Nearly all undergraduate students say they use generative AI to help with their assessed work, a survey has found.
The proportion of students who report that they are including AI-generated text in their work has also been slowly increasing, according to a survey by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi).
Despite the near-universal use of AI, undergraduates are still divided on its impact. Some said that it allowed them more time for critical thinking, while others said that it stopped them using their brain.
Many students felt that they did not have enough support to learn how to use AI effectively, said Charlotte Armstrong, co-author of the report and policy manager at Hepi.
“If universities want graduates to feel prepared for the future, then AI literacy and capability must be embedded across the curriculum,” she said. “These skills cannot be treated as optional.”
The survey of 1,054 full-time undergraduates in the UK found that 94 per cent reported using AI in at least one way, and 95 per cent used generative AI to help with assessed work.
Students who reported that they included AI-generated text in assessed work rose to 12 per cent this year, up from 8 per cent in 2025 and 3 per cent in 2024.
Nearly two in three (65 per cent) of students said AI had changed university assessment significantly. However, two in five (42 per cent) still said they would be putting off using it out of fear of being accused of cheating.
Almost one in two (49 per cent) said AI had improved their student experience while one in six (16 per cent) felt it had made their student experience worse.
Those who disliked AI cited reasons such as “it is making us all lazy”, “I’m not using my brain at all”, and “it encourages you to think less”.
About 15 per cent said that they were using it to get advice, companionship or address loneliness.
There was a fairly even split in the proportion of students who agreed that their university encouraged AI use (37 per cent) compared with those who disagreed (36 per cent). Students from Russell Group institutions were most likely to agree that their university encouraged the use of AI.
Hepi recommended universities should provide induction support on using AI for all students, offer training for staff, publish clear guidance on its use, make sure tools that give students an advantage are equally accessible, and consider adapting their curriculum to explicitly teach AI skills.
A survey of university professors and lecturers carried out last month by Coursera, a global online learning platform, found that only one in four said they felt confident they could spot AI-generated work.