Contract cheating is a form of academic dishonesty in which students pay others to complete their coursework. It is also known as ghostwriting, and it occurs when individuals engage a third-party or service to complete their assignment or exam. Contract cheating can happen through various means, including family and friends, academic custom writing sites, legitimate learning sites, legitimate non-learning sites, paid exam takers, and pre-written essay banks.

Contract cheating undermines learning, erodes learning environments, damages learning relationships, and places the student, the faculty/teacher, the educational organization, and society at risk from students who will graduate with knowledge gaps, undeserved academic awards, and a propensity to engage in dishonest behaviors in their professional careers.

Contract cheating is different from plagiarism. Plagiarism is when you have taken credit for ideas or work that you did not create, while contract cheating means you have done no work at all and have had someone else do all of it.

Contract cheating is a serious academic offense and carries serious repercussions. It is important for students and educators to understand the practices and strategies to prevent contract cheating and promote academic integrity in learning environments.