Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

ChatGPT: Cardiff students admit using AI on essays

ChatGPT: Cardiff students admit using AI on essays

University students have confessed to writing essays with the help of ChatGPT's artificial intelligence program.

Cardiff University students said they had received first class grades for essays written using the AI chatbot.

ChatGPT is an AI program capable of producing human-like responses and academic pieces of work.

Cardiff University said it was reviewing its policies and would issue new university-wide guidance shortly.

Tom, not his real name, is one of the students who conducted his own experiment using ChatGPT.

Tom, who averages a 2.1 grade, submitted two 2,500 essays in January, one with the help of the chatbot and one without.

For the essay he wrote with the help of AI, Tom received a first - the highest mark he has ever had at university.

In comparison, he received a low 2.1 on the essay he wrote without the software.

"I didn't copy everything word for word, but I would prompt it with questions that gave me access to information much quicker than usual," said Tom.

He also admitted that he would most likely continue to use ChatGPT for the planning and framing of his essays.

A recent Freedom of Information request to Cardiff University revealed that during the January 2023 assessment period, there were 14,443 visits to the ChatGPT site on the university's own wi-fi networks.

One month before, there were zero recorded visits.

OpenAI launched ChatGPT last November


Despite the increase in visits during January's assessment period, the university believes there is nothing to suggest that the visits were for illegitimate purposes.

"Most visits have been identified as coming from our research network - our School of Computer Science and Informatics, for example, has an academic interest in the research and teaching of artificial intelligence," said Cardiff University.

John, not his real name, is another student at the university who admitted using the software to help him with assignments.

"I've used it quite a few times since December. I think I've used it at least a little bit for every assessment I've had," he said.

"It's basically just become part of my work process, and will probably continue to be until I can't access it anymore.

"When I first started using it, I asked it to write stuff like 'compare this niche theory with this other niche theory in an academic way' and it just aced it."

Although ChatGPT does not insert references, John said he had no issue filling those in himself.

"I've also used it to summarise concepts from my course that I don't think the lecturers have been great at explaining," he said.

"It's a really good tool for cutting out the waffle that some lecturers go into for theories which you don't actually need to talk about in essays.

"It probably cuts about 20% of the effort I would need to put into an essay."

Both students said they do not use ChatGPT to write their essays, but to generate content they can tweak and adapt themselves.

As for being caught, John is certain that the AI influence in his work is undetectable.

"I see no way that anyone could distinguish between work completely my own and work which was aided by AI," he said.

However, John is concerned about being caught in the future. He said if transcripts of his communication with the AI network were ever found, he fears his degree could be taken away from him.

"I'm glad I used it when I did, in the final year of my degree, because I feel like a big change is coming to universities when it comes to coursework because it's way too easy to cheat with the help of AI," he said.

"I like to think that I've avoided this, whilst reaping the benefits of GPT in my most important year."

Cardiff University said it took allegations of academic misconduct, including plagiarism, "extremely seriously".

"Although not specifically referenced, the improper use of AI would be covered by our existing academic integrity policy," a spokesman said.

"We are aware of the potential impact of AI programmes, like ChatGPT, on our assessments and coursework.

"Maintaining academic integrity is our main priority and we actively discourage any student from academic misconduct in its many forms."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
×