Artificial Intelligence (AI) has completely transformed the way candidates used to search and apply for colleges, universities or even job posts. With the increasing modification and adoption of technology in major industries and sectors, using AI to find the most stable program and securing admissions has become a new norm around the world. Moreover, educational instructions nowadays have also shifted to the use of AI for screening, interviewing and selecting potential students. Today, students prefer to use technology to streamline their educational processes with higher accuracy and minimal effort.
Role of AI in helping students in the admission process:
Searching and exploring for university, college and program options:
Students seek the assistance of AI to search for universities, colleges, degree programs and scholarships as it answers all the queries under one platform and saves time spent on research. Students prefer using AI instead of Google for university and program searches, as they do not have to switch to multiple tabs and explore them individually.
Writing Personal Statements, S.O.P and essays for admission:
Students use AI to generate effective essays and personal statements through widely available AI tools such as Chat GPT, Rytr and Paperpal, and paraphrasing tools such as SciSpace Paraphrasing AI, QuillBot AI, etc. These AI writing and paraphrasing tools ensure that the essays, Statement of Purpose (SOP) and personal statements to be submitted by the students are error-free and free of grammar and styling mistakes. Students provide prompts to these AI tools and receive a unique response which effectively communicates and reflects their stories and purposes.
Tailoring and modifying resume for application:
Another positive impact of AI on the university admission process is the use of this technology for the modification of resumes. There are several AI tools available on the internet which help in modifying and enhancing the resumes and portfolios of admission-seeking students, increasing the probability of their admission applications getting accepted.
Preparation for interview and final selection:
AI is also used by students to obtain possible interviewing questions and their appropriate answers according to their program/degree. This helps students prepare for the final selection process and increases their chances of securing admission to the desired program or institute.
Role of AI in helping universities in the admission process:
Similarly from the other side, the future of college admissions is also dependent on AI at almost half of the institutions. Today, educational institutions prefer AI-driven college applications, as they are managed and processed easily.
Screening of applications using AI:
Universities use AI to screen student’s applications on the basis of fed algorithms. As universities receive thousands of applications from students worldwide, it gets difficult for the administrative department to figure out the applications which meet all the eligibility criteria for the program. To overcome this situation of difficulty and to reduce the time of screening applications for a faster admission process, universities have switched to the use of AI for automated application screening.
Analysis of eligible students after screening:
After sorting out and screening applications which meet the eligibility criteria for admission
Universities also use AI to analyse the profile of the accepted candidates and suggest possible scholarships according to the categories they fit into. This is because some universities analyse the academic history and profile of students at the time of admission and before the commencement of classes to make them eligible for student merit-based opportunities and offers.
AI chatbots for student’s assistance:
During the admission season, students have multiple queries regarding their admission, program, courses, fees, etc., which they ask through universities’ official emails. This process often takes time, as universities have to cater and respond to multiple queries altogether, resulting in increased waiting times for the students and increased response times for the universities. To overcome this problem, universities have now added AI-based chatbots on their official websites and social media platforms, which give instant replies to students and direct them to the designated individuals. This saves time and effort for the university administration, as well as for the students.
Interview process:
Some universities also use AI to conduct interviews with the applicants, by feeding questions and replies as algorithms. In some cases, universities use AI to analyse the recorded interviews to assess students’ responses such as their facial expressions, way of communication, fluency, active response etc. In most cases, AI is used by universities for transcribing and analysing potential keywords relevant to skills, education, experiences etc.
Ethical Impact of AI in University Admissions:
Despite the fact that the AI-powered admission process is much more effective, easier and smarter, there are certain aspects that need to be considered while applying for university admission, or while selecting applicants from the application pool.
Biased algorithms based on past trends and data:
The use of AI in the university admission process can give rise to unfair selection, due to biases in the algorithm. In some cases, AI algorithms have been trained using past data and are unaware of emergent trends, which can impact the decision-making process and make it biased.
Inhumane nature of assessment:
AI lacks humanised thinking, which contributes to an unfair disadvantage for students during their admission process. This is because AI is unable to fully understand and interpret bits of emotions and personal nuances in the essays, SOP, or personal statements of the students, failing to understand the depth of the applicant’s story.
Violation of privacy:
Students have to provide their personal data and history on AI-based platforms to streamline their admission processes, which often breaches the privacy and security of the users. Students feel unsafe while uploading their personal and original documents and private information on the internet, as they have no idea how the information will be stored and used further. The chances of cyber-attacks also raise privacy and data security concerns among students.
Copyright infringement:
While applying for university admissions, students sometimes violate the academic integrity and copyright rules as they copy someone else’s work such as essays/SOP etc. and present it as their own. This happens when students enter a prompt for an essay etc., and AI based on the previous data, provides chunks of information/data from other people’s work without acknowledging/referencing them, and the students copies it unknowingly. This is considered as an illegal act and often results in the cancellation of the admission process for the students.
To conclude, the AI-powered admission process has transformed the entire educational system and offers increased efficiency in the admission-related administrative processes. The use of AI in university admissions serves the students, and the universities, both in unique and personalised ways. However, there are certain ethical impacts of AI which must be considered while screening and selecting applicants, or while applying for university admission.
