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An associate dean of academic services spends a lot of time studying, lamenting and worrying about cheating in universities, but a Montreal-based online service that propels the activity to a new level made even her wince. The website unemployedprofessors.com has teachers writing papers for students. "So you can play while we make your papers go away" is its tag line.

Although Chinese students have been going to America to study for decades, their numbers have grown dramatically in the past few years. Many of them have only a basic knowledge of foreign universities and difficulty making sense of complicated applications. As a result, a huge industry of education agents has arisen in the country to help guide them — and, in some cases, to do whatever it takes to ensure that they are accepted.

According to Babson Survey Research Group's last survey of online education programmes at colleges and universities, 6.1 million students took at least one online class in fall 2010 – a 10.1 percent increase over the previous year. But as the number of students in online courses increases, so too does the potential for cheating.

Once comprehensively surveyed, the magnitude and reach of fraud is becoming clear. For example, research suggests that the majority of applications from a number of large student-sending countries are either significantly embellished or outright fraudulent. As a result, tens of thousands of international students, having passed through visa and admissions systems, are enrolled all over the world based on school transcripts, financial support statements, recommendation letters or test scores that are untrue.

After studying for two years to be a teacher, one student found out that the degree her school offers is worthless. It is a story being replayed across many Indian cities. Poorly regulated, unaccredited and often entirely fake colleges have sprung up as demand for higher education accelerates, driven by rising aspirations and a bulging youth population.

Indonesia's top institution made headlines this month when 52 of its prospective students were caught cheating during an entrance test for the international programme of the medical faculty. It is the first time that cheating involving large numbers of students has been detected.

Malindi's deputy District Education Officer has asked head teachers to ensure that students complete the syllabus in time. He said failure by teachers to complete the syllabus early hurts the students' performance in national exams. She said completing the syllabus in time will encourage good performance and curb any irregularities in the exam.

The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education has detected cases of fraud in the admission process of two international schools. More than a dozen teachers and faculty members from the Younghoon and Daewon International Middle School were found to have tampered with applications to admit unqualified students.

Police and education authorities are investigating allegations of mass cheating by international students at tertiary institutes throughout the country. The man who reported the issues alleged that he was contracted to write assignments for students at various universities who could not meet language standards.

Jakarta's Pramuka Street intersection is well known for its essay-production services, as Indonesian universities continue to be dogged by the problem of ghostwritten essays. By paying a sum, a student can graduate without making much effort writing the final-year dissertation.