A new film has revealed the extent of a secret industry in Kenya, where highly educated 'shadow scholars' ghostwrite essays and dissertations for students in the UK and other countries. The film, which follows Oxford professor Patricia Kingori, interviews young Kenyans who earn a living by writing academic papers that students pass off as their own.
Kenya has been identified as a hotspot for essay mills, with an estimated 40,000 ghostwriters working in Nairobi alone. These writers are smart, ambitious and well-educated, but face a lack of job opportunities. They work through the night, often mastering two different subjects in 12 hours, to meet tight deadlines and avoid being kicked off platforms.
Professor Kingori described the writers as 'incredible', comparing them to elite athletes. She noted that they create fake IDs using white profiles and names to convince clients they are based in the UK or US. 'Nothing that I’ve seen will tell you that this is somebody in Nairobi,' she said. 'There’s this idea that this could not be coming from an African country.'
The best-paid writers can earn as much as a doctor in Nairobi, with prices ranging from less than £1 per page to thousands of pounds for a full dissertation. One writer, Adrian, has written essays for students at Oxford and Leeds universities. When asked about the ethics, he said: 'For me, I’m gaining knowledge. I would pass that question to the client.'
On the other side of the world, US student Kate sold nudes to pay $300 for someone else to write her essays, unable to bear letting her parents down after they invested their life savings in her education. Essay mills were banned in England in 2022, but the practice continues to thrive globally.
