What is the ruling on seeking help from someone to write a graduation project in English due to weakness in academic language, and is this considered cheating?
It is permissible for a student to seek assistance from others with academic assignments, such as graduation projects, if the assistance pertains to formal aspects not intended for the student to perform personally, and if the educational system does not prohibit it. However, if the assistance concerns the core of the research, which the student is expected to conduct personally, and if the educational system prohibits seeking external assistance for it, then it is forbidden and impermissible due to the deception involved.
Ibn Uthaymeen clarified that hiring someone to prepare research papers or theses to obtain academic degrees is considered a form of betrayal because it contradicts the university's objectives and the reality of the situation.
Similarly, fatwas from the Jordanian Dar Al-Ifta (House of Fatwas) distinguished between formal efforts in research (such as typing and formatting), for which assistance is permissible, and original efforts (such as formulating information and drawing conclusions), which should not be prepared for students. This is because it creates the impression for the teacher that it is the student's personal effort, leading to falsehood and deception. They cited the : "The one who pretends to have been given what he has not been given is like one who wears two garments of falsehood." Academic language weakness is not a justification for prohibited assistance.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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