Gen Z Student: Knowing my own essays will be graded against the work of AI is disheartening

Jane Cowan in the Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin. Photograph: Moya Nolan

I went into my first year of college in September 2022. Two months later, in November, ChatGPT was launched. 

And from the moment of its introduction, artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT has totally changed the college landscape. 

Research that would have previously taken weeks or months to read and understand, can now be interpreted and summarised in seconds. 

Complete essays can be produced instantly. As a student, I have real concerns about the ubiquitous use of AI on our university campuses. 

Because the reality is, assignments written by AI often pass, or achieve high grades. AI is getting university degrees.

Now, I’m heading into the final year of my degree. And I can honestly say that I’ve never used artificial intelligence to do my work. But that puts me into a minority. 

I study English Literature. And I find my degree difficult. Waking up early to go to the library to get my reading done; preparing notes on novels to discuss in class; spending weeks researching and thinking about complex essay topics; late nights while I struggle to meet deadlines. 

Sometimes, you can put in so much effort, and still walk away with a result you’re not too happy with. That’s the harsh reality of university. It’s bloody difficult. 

The feeling that ‘you’d be stupid not to use artificial intelligence’ is very real, particularly when you see people walking away from modules with high grades that they didn’t really work for.

I’m not saying that universities are openly allowing AI usage. The problem is that, while universities may have strict policies around the use of AI, implementing those policies is another issue. 

It seems to me that universities are outpaced by AI. As students, we are told that the university is using software that will detect AI use. 

And professors say that they can spot an essay written by AI with ease. Maybe that’s true. But proving that someone has used AI is another thing. 

Because if it is so easy to detect AI, why then, do I know so many people that have never been reprimanded for it?

In the earlier years of my degree, some of my exams were held online. They were always ‘open book’ style, meaning that I could use my notes or do research during the exam. 

During those exams, I know that many students used AI to generate their answers. And I am sure that our university was also aware of that. 

I totally get the appeal. When the opportunity to achieve highly in an exam presents itself, it’s difficult to resist that. Of course, people will resort to AI. 

But when the results of those exams are released, and you see that people are achieving the same grade or higher than you, without attending lectures or completing the reading, it can be difficult to reconcile. I know that from personal experience.

Logically, I understand that completing my essays and assignments without AI will benefit me in the long run. But the knowledge that my work will be graded against the work of AI is disheartening. 

Professors can’t give everyone a first class honours. So, if they can’t prove with certainty who has used AI, I’m often competing with AI to get the grades I want. 

When I recently received my university results for my third year of college, I couldn’t help but think about how much easier my year would have been if I had used AI, or if I would have achieved more with the help of ChatGPT.

I’m not some kooky hippie longing for academia before technology. The ability to access almost any piece of research from my laptop expands the scope of what students can do and learn significantly. 

But what I am saying is that AI is changing our universities. As a student that is trying to do well, that concerns me. AI is not going anywhere, anytime soon. And I’m not naïve enough to believe that universities can or should attempt to eliminate AI usage on campuses. 

If AI can increase students’ levels of understanding and knowledge, we should take advantage of that. But problems emerge when students are earning degrees from work that is not their own. I don’t know what the answer to this issue is. 

Maybe it’s more in-person exams, or improved AI detection software. Because right now, AI is not improving the levels of knowledge among our students. 

It's providing students with a free pass to a university degree, while the work for that degree becomes increasingly optional.