Students as a social group are proverbial for being strapped for cash. That’s why they are always on the lookout for ways to earn some money without necessarily committing to a regular full or part-time job that might interfere with their class schedule.
Writing essays tops the lists of money-making opportunities for students and is a very popular option with young people regardless of their major, year, gender, or life situation. If you are considering taking this path, this article is for you.
Of course, the experience differs depending on whether you are freelancing online, discreetly accepting rewards for helping out your classmates and peers or working full-time for a paper writing service. Still, some of the pros and cons overlap, so I decided I’d make a summary of the benefits and downsides of academic ghostwriting as a career or even a side gig.
Pros of Writing Essays for Money
When you decide whether to take up a career in writing, it’s important to know what your goals are and why you want to be a writer. Writing essays might be a great fit for you if you value at least one of the following:
Flexibility
When you write essays, you can devote as much or as little time to it as possible. For example, you can only work evenings or weekends. Or you can work for three hours three days a week – you choose which days and when during the day (or night if you are a night owl like me). You fit your workload around your existing responsibilities. Writing for money is one of the most flexible gigs in existence – no waiting at the tables, babysitting, or dog walking can compare. No wonder it’s a favorite with students. Plus, you can work from the comfort of your home, in a café, in a library during recess, or anywhere else where you have an internet connection.
Familiarity
Writing essays and solving homework problems is something you, as a student, already know how to do. There is nothing to learn here except maybe some formatting and citation style nuances. You already must have a pretty good idea of what a good essay should look like, so it’s a familiar setting and a moderate difficulty. Therefore, there will be minimum stress and an easy learning curve. If you consider school assignments to be an intellectually stimulating, pleasant challenge, you will thrive in this job.
Low barriers to entry
If you decide to write for money as a freelancer, all you need to do is create an account on a platform like Fiverr, People per Hour, or WriterBay. If you are willing to work for a company, you will need to apply, but the requirements are usually not as strict as for other types of jobs. You will need to pass the language proficiency test (which shouldn’t be a problem if you are considering writing for money in the first place), maybe complete a writing assignment, or submit some samples of your writing. You won’t need years of experience, recommendations, advanced degrees, or special certifications to start – just writing skills and willingness to learn.
Learning more about things you like
Writing is learning something new every day to share this with others. As an academic writer, you will be able to explore topics you are curious about by researching and reading relevant scholarly sources more intensely than your standard courses could allow. The assignments can cover almost anything under the sun, but you can pick precisely what you are good at or interested in learning more about. If you like independent learning and research, this is a dream job for you because you will be paid to pursue your passions.
Becoming a better student
By exercising your writing muscles this way, you also grow your academic prowess, honing research, analysis, synthesis, and persuasive skills. If you are still a student, you will see how writing papers for your own classes will become increasingly easier and faster. Plus, familiarity with various citation styles and paper formats becomes second nature to you. After working for a paper writing service, finalizing your thesis will be a piece of cake!
Honing transferable skills
This is an excellent start to your career since it combines flexibility with skills you will need further on, like discipline, punctuality, multitasking, communication, time management, planning, teamwork, etc. Of course, writing as a freelancer, you are an independent unit, but you might consider your clients as your partners, depending on you. Writing essays is an opportunity to hone all those transferable skills that look good on your resume and will make you a dependable and productive employee and an asset for any company, regardless of the path your career might take afterward.
Possibility of earning good money
Of course, the precise sum will depend on your qualifications, productivity, and the amount of time you will be able to dedicate weekly, but money is quite good. As a side gig, it allows you to supplement your income and fund hobbies and little luxuries like dining out. As a full-time job, it enables you to support yourself – and even your family. One of the TOP writers working for our service, Mag, is the sole breadwinner in the household. She types away all day while her boyfriend minds their two kids and a cat, and they are very happy with this arrangement. Mag has a Master’s degree, is very proficient, and treats her work for the service as a full-time job.
Cons of Writing Essays for Money
Although this can be a lucrative choice, writing essays certainly isn’t for everyone. To make an informed decision, you must be aware of the potential drawbacks. Consider which ones of the following downsides you can live with and which ones are deal breakers for you.
Competition
Writing for money is a very competitive field. Moreover, AI text generation tools like ChatGPT took some potential clients away. Assignments can be difficult to find, especially if you are only starting out and haven’t grown a loyal client base yet. Patience and persistence are indispensable when you are new to this job. You might need to take up work that isn’t very interesting only to procure an assignment and build a reputation. This downside is not as prominent when you work for a company since the order distribution system is designed to fit each writer’s desired workload. However, you still have fewer choices as a newbie.
Strict deadlines and fast turnaround times
Although flexibility is listed here as a plus, it has a darker side. Dry spells with no relevant orders might change with a deluge of assignments, depending on the season. You might be required to work longer hours or skip weekends occasionally to meet a deadline on an important, urgent order. This can be stressful, especially if you struggle with anxiety or have difficulty working under pressure.
Giving up ownership of your work
A good writer always pours a part of their soul into their work. Even if it’s a basic essay, you might take pride in some little achievements like a fortunate turn of phrase, a shrewd observation, or a particularly astute analysis that discovered something no one ever noticed before. It’s even more complex when you write fundamental projects like research papers, theses, or dissertations. Yet you don’t own them and have no right to attach your name to them. You cannot even discretely put any of the papers as a sample of your work into a portfolio. You forfeit your rights to your writing when you give up a byline in exchange for money. This lack of credit for your creative output might diminish your job satisfaction.
Ethical considerations
Of course, we cannot ignore the aspect of academic honesty. Despite most reputable writing companies that produce academic samples warning their clients that these papers are not intended for submission, some students still break this rule. You should consider that a client might violate their school’s code of honor and hand in your paper under their name, committing contract cheating. This way, you might inadvertently enable the same culture that breeds plagiarism, bribery, and corruption. Moreover, while writing academic papers for money is legal in the US, it is banned in other countries like the UK and Australia.
Limited opportunities for growth
As an essay writer, you can move up to a higher category of Advanced or TOP writer and potentially become an editor, handling more complex assignments and earning more money. However, your growth is limited at that. Despite your skills and knowledge growing, the bulk of assignments for an essay writer lie in the domain of high school and college curricula, which some might find limiting. If you are ambitious and would prefer to move to a leadership position sometime or want more challenges in your work, you will need to consider switching to journalism, research, or the publishing industry.
Despite the potential downsides, writing essays for money can be a satisfying way to earn income as a student or even as a specialist with a university degree. If you want to try your pen as an academic writer, consider joining our team! I already have a short introductory guide if you are interested. Be happy, healthy, wealthy, and wise – and love writing!
