Paid Academic Writing Services: A Growing Challenge to Academic Integrity of Higher Education, Pakistan

This study aimed to explore the phenomenon of Paid Academic Writing Services (PAWS), a growing challenge to academic integrity in Professional Education in Pakistan. As the exploratory case study method was used to investigate, the researchers adopted a predesigned interview guide to collect data from faculty members currently serving at the Business Schools in Pakistan. The findings of the study confirm two patterns of the Academic Writing Services (AWS), commonly used in the Pakistani context, including paid and unpaid services. The first pattern includes the process where students outsource the completion of their academic tasks, including assignments, quizzes, research papers and theses to a third party that is otherwise to be accomplished by themselves. The second pattern includes the process where students have their friends or family members complete an assignment and submit it as their work. The findings of the study also highlight the challenges faced by the faculty members in preventing the PAWS. The study recommends that higher educational institutes in Pakistan develop, under the supervision of HEC, an effective policy and mechanism to ensure the fundamental values of academic integrity.