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How to Tell if a Student Bought a Paper: 7 Signs to Check

How to tell if a student bought a paper

Buying a paper online has become a common source of academic dishonesty. It’s not surprising because most students don’t have the time to write essays in addition to all of their other classes.

Many professors may think that the students aren’t doing their homework, but very few know how to find out if students did buy the papers.

While some teachers can search for traces of plagiarism, there are other methods of detecting if a paper is purchased.

This blog will look at different ways to tell if a student bought a paper so that you can develop methods of detecting academic paper purchasing dishonesty.

How to Tell if a Student Bought a Paper

When it comes to the world of academia, research and writing are just as important as the actual work you’re studying.

A lot of the time, your essay will be the one thing that will make your professors take notice and take you seriously.

As such, many students are tempted to buy a paper online. If you’ve ever wondered how to tell if a student purchased a paper, this article is for you. 

Buying Papers

There are a few ways to tell, but one of the most obvious ways is to check the quality of the writing. Surprisingly, there are many ways students cheat in online classes.

If it’s poorly written and full of spelling and grammatical errors, then the chances are good that they bought the paper.

You can also tell because there will be no citations, and the references will not match the work.

Let’s discuss in detail how to know if a student bought a paper:

1. Perfect English

Online papers are primarily written by professionals who have completed the course they are writing essays on.

On the other hand, students who pay for writing services may not have as much knowledge as the professionals who have completed the course.

This brings a disparity in the grammar and the general quality of the discussion in the essay.

2. Change of Writing Style

Each student has their style of writing. It is the work of a professor or instructor to know each of their students’ writing styles.

If you notice any change in the tone from the last paper to the current one, the chances are that the student may have bought the essay.

3. Plagiarism

There are a lot of free and premium programs online that can be used in plagiarism detection.

Students Buying Papers

Teachers and all the school fraternity should invest in these programs to eliminate plagiarism in academics.

When you use such software, and notice copied content, you will be sure that the student has either bought the paper or copied it somewhere.

4. Uploaded Early

There is a duration allowed for any paper. Also, the instructor needs to know how simple or difficult the paper is to know when to expect it.

Considering most students have other courses to deal with, if the paper is submitted earlier than expected, the chances are that they bought from a professional who specializes in writing only.

5. Check File Authorship

File authorship is a powerful feature for detecting plagiarism because it can tell you who authored the paper.

The file’s “Author” field is usually the user’s name who created the document or who last saved it; if the document was created in a word processing program. If this name varies from the student’s name, then they might not be the real author.

6. Ask the Student to Defend the Paper

Students Buying Papers

Another simple way to know if the student has bought the paper is to ask them to defend or discuss the document.

If the student alters the article, cannot defend it or discusses it in-depth, they have not written the paper.

This test works because documents have thesis statements and theses have conclusions.

If an essay has a conclusion, then the author should be able to defend it.

7. Check the Accuracy of the References

Referencing is the detailed information you add to your paper to show where you found information. This information is essential in papers such as thesis and dissertation.

Instructors ask their students to use a particular referencing style in some subjects. If the referencing style is wrong or the referencing is wrong, it is almost certain that the student bought the paper.

FAQ

Is buying papers for college cheating?

It is common for online websites to hire college students to write essays and other school papers.

Often, these papers are written by actual students, who then turn around and hire someone else to write their papers for them.

Some students who don’t have the time to write so many papers, buy them online. On the other hand, those who are good at writing find a way to make good use of it and earn money.

It is not cheating, but it’s better to write independently and get a good grade.

Why do students buy essays?

Students may choose to buy essays for a variety of reasons. The most obvious reason is to save time.

Students are often busy, and many don’t have the time to do their essays from scratch.

Instead, they buy essays to help them with their schoolwork. This can be a good choice if you struggle to find the time to get your work done.

Can professors find out if you bought an essay?

Technically, yes, but it’s unlikely, especially if you’re using a reliable service.

Likely, only teachers at your high school who have an opinion of you will know, and they’ll most likely believe that you improved your grades on your own.

It’s a very thin line between being caught by your professor and never being caught, so please ensure your buy papers from a reliable company.

Can you get caught buying an essay online?

It depends on what kind of essay company you choose. If you buy an essay from a reputable company, then it is unlikely that the professor will find out about it.

Reputable essay writing companies don’t ask for any personal information, so the professor may not know who the essay was written for.

However, if your buy essays from a shoddy writing company, the professor may suspect that you bought it, and he might be able to trace the paper to the essay writing company.