Can You Pay Someone to Take Your Online Class?

Yes, services like this exist, and anyone searching “pay someone to take my online class” will find plenty of them advertising to students who are behind. It’s also one of the riskiest decisions a student can make. If you’re searching for this, you’re probably short on time and out of options, so here is what actually happens, followed by what to do instead.

How these services work

In a typical arrangement, someone else logs into your account and completes the coursework, and sometimes the exams, in your name, for a fee. You’ll see them described as “take my online class,” “take my online class at a fee,” or an online class helper. Sites that rank for “best online class help” often use that same language while promising grades. Many pose as ordinary tutoring services, which is why the wording of what a service actually does matters.

What can happen to you

• Academic penalties. Schools treat this as academic misconduct. Depending on the school, outcomes range from a failing grade to suspension or expulsion, with a note on your record.
• Your accounts and personal data. Many schools use a single login for email, financial aid, and student records. Handing over your credentials can mean handing over all of it.
• Scams and blackmail. Students have reported paying and getting nothing, or being threatened with exposure after a dispute. You can’t complain to anyone without admitting what you did.
• The law. Providing or advertising these services is illegal in England, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, and about 17 US states have laws on it. Those laws target the providers rather than students, but your school’s misconduct policy still applies to you.

How students get caught

Online coursework leaves a trail. Login times and locations that don’t match your usual pattern, activity logs, and sudden changes in how your work reads are all visible to your school. The most common giveaway is the gap between the online work and the proctored one: a student who scored well all semester and can’t perform in person. Anyone who did the work for you can also report you.

What about an online test taker?

A test taker service takes your timed exams for you. It’s the highest-stakes version, because exams are the assessments most likely to be proctored or identity-checked, and having someone else sit an exam as you can be treated as fraud and not as an ordinary integrity violation. If a test is what you’re worried about, preparing for it is the better route, and we can help with that.

What to do instead if you’re behind

1. Email your instructor now. Ask about extensions, make-up work, or an incomplete. Many instructors are willing to work something out, especially when you ask early.
2. Talk to your academic advisor about a late withdrawal or an incomplete. A “W” on a transcript is almost always better than an “F,” but check the deadlines and what it does to your financial aid.
3. List what’s due and sort it by weight. A catch-up plan is often more doable than it looks from inside the pile-up. Our Canvas and Blackboard guide shows one.
4. Use the free resources your tuition already covers: office hours, the tutoring center, and the learning center.
5. Get tutoring on the material you’re stuck on. This is what we do. A tutor explains the concept and you do the work, which is the only kind of help that carries over to the exam.
6. If life is the problem, contact the dean of students or disability services. They can arrange accommodations that you can’t get any other way.

Common misconceptions

If you’re behind on a platform and want to get unstuck on the material itself, start with the guide for yours: MyMathLab, ALEKS, Cengage, McGraw Hill Connect, or Canvas and Blackboard.