PayfortheA – Freelancing for Grades and Homework
I have a confession to make. When I was in middle school, I was paid by other students to write their book reports and history papers. Most of them got A’s and the teachers were probably cynical about where these kids got their homework from. I made pretty good money, though.
Well, PayfortheA.com is the more modern version of that service. Think of it as Elance or VOIS for homework.
Created by a group of students at Florida State University, the site is an online marketplace for buying and selling homework assignments and help. Students in need can find everything from online tutors to copy-editors to those willing to just outright do their homework for them. All for a fee, of course.
The marketplace works in an auction-style format wherein the person looking for help posts a description of what they need, choosing the appropriate category (math, English, etc.) and those willing to help bid for the job. Once a bid is accepted, PayfortheA takes over.
The buyer (student) must fund the auction through PayPal or via credit card. The money is held in escrow by PayfortheA until the job is complete. This keeps both parties safe from easy fraud.
The site is remarkably well thought out and easy to use. Most of those using the site (judging from jobs that are posted) are looking for someone to do their homework outright, though the site’s About Us and FAQ pages don’t mention this as an option, really. They emphasize “sharing information” and “working together to find tutorship and help.”
Critics of the site, of course, will point out that the site caters to the lazy and/or rich students who are using their monetary position to pay more gifted, and cash-strapped students to do their homework for them. My only response to that, really, is: when has this not happened?
In the beginning paragraph, I confessed to having been one of those cash-strapped students who was paid to do lazier kids’ homework. This has gone on since the institution of formal education.
What do you think of PayfortheA? Leave us a comment below.
