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Since the release of ChatGPT in 2022, the impacts of generative AI have been a major strategic question in higher education. The emergence of new AI tools and products has the potential to transform teaching, learning, and research practices on college campuses, while also introducing complex questions around academic integrity, ethics, and accessibility.

Ithaka S+R is working to uncover the implications of generative AI for higher education and discover its potential to support instructors, students, and researchers.

AI adoption

As new generative AI products come on the market, colleges and universities are increasingly adopting AI technology to facilitate processes and systems—even building custom AI platforms for their staff and students.

We’re working with a cohort of institutions seeking to make AI generative for their campus communities and keeping individuals and institutions up-to-date with emerging AI tools with our GenAI Product Tracker.

Research and scholarship

Generative AI is transforming all stages of the research cycle, from introducing new methods of conducting scientific research to affecting scholarly publishing and communication across disciplines. We’re investigating the impacts of generative AI for researchers through surveys and interviews.

Teaching and learning

Generative AI’s impacts are perhaps most apparent in the classroom, where AI tools can be used by instructors to create lesson plans and grade assignments, and by students to brainstorm and study for assessments. Our work supports colleges and universities to successfully navigate the changing technological landscape of higher education.