The University’s default position is that generative AI must not be used unless specifically advised by the module leader or Programme Director. Please refer to the Academic Integrity and Misconduct policy (Clerkenwell and Moorgate campus) and the Academic Integrity Procedure (Tooting campus) for further information.
Module leaders and Programme/Course Directors should include a statement in their assessment specifications/papers and any relevant handbooks to clarify to students whether generative AI is permitted for each assessment and if so, how it is permitted. It is appreciated that asessments for the current year have been finalised, but the statement should be included in writing in appropriate key documents as far as possible. Any permitted use of generative AI must be clearly communicated to students in writing to avoid any confusion in the event of an academic misconduct case.
Where generative AI is permitted for the assessment, the icon and text given below are recommended. This will need to be accompanied by a clear statement describing the permitted use. This could be an agreed school statement or specific to the assessment (see "How do I permit use of generative AI?" below)
Permitted use of Generative AI
Generative AI tools can be used only as instructed by the module leader or programme director.
For some assessments, it may be necessary to clarify where GenAI cannot be used, for example, practical assessments, presentations and invigilated assessments. Where a programme has a generally permissive approach to the use of GenAI, the following icon and text could be used by staff who wish to make this clear for specific assessments.
No Generative AI
The assessment must be completed without any assistance from generative AI tools.
Apply a standard statement
To make things easier for staff who wish to permit some use of AI, e.g. to support idea generation, research and writing, Associate Deans Education (ADE), or nominated leads for generative AI, have been asked to agree a standard statement for use by module leaders and Programme Directors in their School. The standard statement will outline permitted uses of generative AI and enable you to apply a statement to your assessments without having to develop your own. Please speak with your ADE, or nominated lead for generative AI, if you do not have access to the standard statement for your School. For those at St George’s School of Health & Medical Sciences, the Generative AI Lead is Luke Woodham, Acting Director of Digital Education. An example statement is provided below. This statement is closely aligned with the same statement from the School of Health and Psychological Sciences, so it is expected that common guidance can be applied from both schools post-merger.
Agree a statement specific to your assessment
If you wish to allow use of generative AI for your assessment beyond that permitted by your school’s standard statement (e.g. your assessment will involve students using generative AI outputs as part of the task), you should discuss this with the ADE or nominated representative for generative AI in the first instance. You will then be asked to draft an assessment-specific statement that can be used in addition to the standard statement for the ADE/nominated representative to approve. This will also need to be made available to students in written form as part of the assessment information. Please note that permitted use of GenAI must be given to students in writing (not purely oral in class) to avoid misunderstandings.
If you are considering incorporating AI into your assessment, then please refer to our guidance on how to incorporate AI into module design and assessment.
Where use of generative AI is specified by a standard statement, schools are asked to ensure that there is also a standard declaration so that students can confirm that generative AI has been used as per the guidance provided. This could be included on an assessment cover sheet, where used, or added to the assessment submission itself. A sample declaration is provided below, and we are looking at getting approval to add this to the declaration shown to students when submitting assignments to the virtual learning environment (VLE):
Where an assessment has permitted use of generative AI in addition to the standard statement, staff should specify any requirements for declaring use. For example, you may require students to submit details of the tools and prompts used and/or a copy of the AI generated output, e.g. using guidance on citing generative AI from Cite Them Right Online (University login required). Alternatively, you may warn students that they might be asked to provide such material.
The statements below have been created in alignment with the School of Health and Psychological Sciences, and provide different options depending upon the form of assessment being used.
Option 1
For assessments that are typically completed under controlled conditions (exams, OSCEs, practicals, etc):
No generative AI
The assessment must be completed without any assistance from generative AI tools.
Option 2
For mainstream assessments that are typically completed without controlled conditions (coursework, essays, reflections, case reports, etc):
Standard generative AI use
Ideas and understanding: You may use generative AI to aid and expand your own understanding: to explain, connect, or generate ideas, to brainstorm and explore potential initial ideas you may want to cover in your submission. The structure and wording of anything you submit must be your own.
Research: You can use generative AI to help look for references or relevant resources or to suggest search terms or strategies, but you must then consult those sources yourself and write about them in your own words. You are responsible for the completeness and accuracy of references included in your work.
Writing and production: You can use word processor spell or grammar checkers, but not tools that rewrite or paraphrase more than individual words or phrases. All writing must be in your own words.
You must not include any material that is directly copied from the output of a generative AI system in your submission.
As long as Generative AI is only used in the ways permitted above, you do not need to declare how it was used.
Option 3
For assessments that require the use of Generative AI, or where the module leader wants to allow the student to use GenAI in specified ways you should use the standard Generative AI use statement in Option 2, plus additional custom text for the specific assessment, to be agreed with the Generative AI Lead for the school.
Explain in precise terms exactly how GenAI may be used beyond the standard use above – please discuss with the Acting Director of Digital Education before publishing. In most cases where more extensive GenAI use is encouraged or required, it would make sense also to require the student to declare how it was used. We can advise on this.
Example: Additional acceptable generative AI use, just for this assessment
Writing and production
You may use Generative AI to help you prepare your slides for this presentation. You must do your research yourself but can get Generative AI to help with the design and appearance of your slides, the structure and text of the slides’ content, or to generate any images you want to include on the slides. You will still be responsible for ensuring the accuracy and comprehensibility of any generative AI material you include. You may not use Generative AI for writing the script for the presentation, which must be in your own words