Penn Admissions releases AI guidelines for undergraduate application cycle

Penn Admissions highlighted the importance of authenticity in a webpage about the use of artificial intelligence in the 2026-27 college application process

Released in early August, the renselors when approaching this admissions cycle’s application materials. Penn Admissions does not prohibit the use of AI but rather asks applicants to retain ownership of their work throughout the application process

“Your essays, activities, and responses should reflect your own ideas, your own voice, and your own experiences,” the redless of what assistance you might use along the way.”

Applicants may use rer counselor, having someone proofread your writing, or using a tool, including an AI tool, to organize your thoughts or check your grammar,” according to the website

A request for comment was left with a University spokesperson

When students submit their application, they are required to certify that the work is “their own work, factually true, and honestly presented.”

According to the website, if an AI tool “generated” an applicant’s responses, their application certification would be compromised. This would also occur if an applicant’s work that was not theirs, if another individual drafted their essays, or if their activities and honors are “embellished or invented.”

“Here’s a simple test: if you couldn’t explain, in an interview or conversation, how you arrived at what you wrote, or speak to it in your own words, it isn’t ready to submit,” the re

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The statement also affirms Penn’s “holistic, committee-based process” in reviewing applications. The admissions team uses AI for administrative purposes — including confirming application completion, ensuring consistent understanding of transcripts, and processing incoming documentations

The reome” of any technology usage before the work affects an applicant’s file

Penn’s guidelines are similar to that of peer institutions. Yale University’s Undergraduate Admissions office page states that applicants using “substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform, technology, or algorithm” constitutes application fraud. Brown University holds the standard that AI usage is not permitted beyond basic functions of grammar review and basic proofreading.

Penn offers general guidance on AI use, and its official course policy is that “each instructor is responsible for setting their own guidelines” on AI in the classroom. As part of last month’s Faculty Senate reports, the Senate Committee on Students and Educational Policy recommended that Penn adopt broad, centralized AI guidelines regarding acceptable and unacceptable use

Last month, the University began piloting PennChat, a secure portal that will provide students with access to several ChatGPT and Claude models. The official AI service is expected to launch mid-August

Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences also announced the creation of a Chief AI Officer Initiative, which is set to launch this fall. The project will collaborate with state and local governments and plans to provide Penn students with hands-on learning opportunities

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Staff reporter Cathy Sui covers federal policy and can be reached at sui@thedp.com. At Penn, she studies finance and statistics

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Source: www.thedp.com