The university uncovered the scam involving students on a postgraduate economics course using ‘essay mills’ to hoodwink lecturers and secure passing grades.
Also known as ‘contract cheating’, essay mills are services which enable students to pay other people to write their assignments on their behalf.
Officials at the UEA say the cheating was related to two of the course’s modules and, when detected, led to a major internal investigation.
Essay mills were made illegal in 2021 in a nationwide bid to crack down on cheating in higher education.
However, the UEA confirmed there had been no police involvement in the investigation, with issues dealt with internally.
The university refused to confirm what sanctions, if any, were taken against the students.
The one-year Masters course consists of taught modules in economic theory and advanced econometrics.
Students can also choose to focus on behavioural and experimental economics, finance and data science.
They are required to complete coursework assignments as well as a dissertation of up to 12,000 words.
The UEA describes the course as the “ideal choice” for those planning to pursue a career as a professional economist within government, industry or financial institutions.
Fees for this year’s course are £11,800 for UK students and £22,700 for international students.
The scandal emerged in newly-released figures from the university on cases of academic misconduct.
They showed a huge spike in contract cheating in the most recent academic year.
A Freedom of Information Act request revealed that in 2023-24, there were 69 cases at the campus.
In each of the previous four years, there had been fewer than five instances.
The university confirmed the figure was campuswide and did not confirm what proportion related to the economics course, but officials singled out the economics scam to explain the extraordinary spike in cases.
A UEA spokesman said: “In 2023/24, the university detected a significant increase in the suspected use of essay mills – where the student pays someone to write their essay – within the postgraduate taught economics cohort.
“This was observed in two modules in particular and led to an in-depth internal investigation whereby the students involved were appropriately dealt with in accordance with the university’s policy on plagiarism and collusion.
“The policy helps to ensure the academic integrity of the university’s learning, teaching and assessment is maintained.”
AI fears remain
The UEA figures show that plagiarism was by far the most common type of misconduct, with 239 cases last year, up from 196.
There was also a significant increase in collusion cases, up from 61 to 95.
These are instances where students break the rules by working together on assignments, rather than on their own.
The figures for contract cheating include the use of artificial intelligence.
However, the university clarified that the bulk of cases involved the use of essay mills on the economics course, rather than AI.
The incorrect use of AI technology like ChatGPT by students remains a concern among academics.
Experts have predicted its use will become harder to detect as the technology advances.
However, academics at the UEA have said the technology is not yet sophisticated enough to avoid detection.
A spokesman added: “We recognise that the overall increase in cases may reflect the emergence and widespread availability of AI-tools and the importance of providing clear guidance to help students avoid misconduct.
“We believe the increase in cases also shows that university staff can recognise the use of AI and refer them for investigation through the appropriate channels.
“UEA’s policy on plagiarism and collusion, which includes inappropriate use of AI, details the types of penalties that can be imposed on students depending on the case – this includes a range of sanctions up to and including potential suspension and expulsion.”
