Here are 4 ways AI is already impacting higher education

UB University

Alcino Donadel

May 15, 2023

While phishing attempts could once be easily detected by grammatical and spelling errors and an awkward tone, communication written by ChatGPT appears more natural and, by extension, easier to trust.

Artificial intelligence is finding evermore creative ways to interweave within our everyday lives, and it’s no different in higher education. When OpenAI released ChatGPT in November, administrators clamored to adapt curriculum around AI-powered students. Little did they realize that college professors are among the most prominent professions affected by AI language modeling.

As quickly as artificial intelligence models develop, so, too, their impact across different facets of higher education. It may be dizzying, but here are some of the most prominent ways AI affects your school.

Admissions

Artificial intelligence is poised to streamline the workload of both the applying student and the receiving admissions officer.

Students today can ask ChatGPT to create a 500-word response to an open prompt that they’d otherwise feel paralyzed to complete themselves. They can direct the bot to write a dramatic story about an adolescent overcoming a significant life event that includes references to a city of the student’s liking. Admissions officers already struggle to detect college applications’ authenticity, and the prevalence of AI language modeling will make plagiarism that much more difficult. While new software aims to combat applications littered with AI, some leaders believe the next step forward is introducing video prompts instead.

However, AI technology might be an antidote to the  increasing workload and turnover rate for admissions officers. Colleges have begun employing technology that can sift through student transcripts and create preliminary assessments on students’ acceptance likelihood. Allowing software such as Student Select or Sia to do the legwork of review helps officers manage their time and compartmentalize their priorities. Colleges to embrace AI software in admissions include Rutgers, Rocky Mountain College and Maryville University.

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