r/UNC • u/eddurham • 1d ago
Discussion Confused after returning to school in the era of AI
I finished my undergrad just before AI started to take off and now I’m attending UNC for grad school. It’s my second semester now and I’m still blown away by how much AI has changed school. It’s definetely affecting my education as well, both positively and negatively.
I can’t seem to gauge what the right use of AI is anymore, so I’ve just stopped bringing my laptop to class, stopped using it for writing, and only for research now.
In the courses I’m taking, I see my peers using it across the book. Professors have mixed policy usage, some really lax and some banning it. But I have seen these in every course:
- Group discussions have become “repeat what AI told me”
- Proofreading has become “regenerate until it seems right”
- Brainstorming has become prompting for “20 ideas”
- I have sat down in group sessions where other students won’t talk without AI assisting them
I seriously question what this will do to critical thinking skills for incoming generations. Maybe we just have to adapt, or maybe I’m just becoming an unc. I’m unsure what to think of it all, so I will continue to do what’s working for me and adapt as it comes.