Policies and documents
York St John University Guiding Principles on the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (2025)
Working ethically, critically and creatively with Generative AI.
Our position
We recognise that Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools - like Open AI's ChatGPT, Microsoft CoPilot, Grammarly, or Google's Gemini - are now part of how many people think, write, plan, and communicate. We also acknowledge many others have ongoing concerns about GenAI's environmental and socioeconomic impacts.
At York St John, we support the thoughtful and responsible use of GenAI - not as a replacement for your thinking, but as a tool that supports your work, when appropriate.
Six Guiding Principles for Using GenAI at York St John
1. You stay in charge
AI tools should support your learning, not do the work for you. You are always responsible for your ideas, analysis, and final submissions. You are also responsible for making up your own mind about the ethics of AI.
"Use AI to help you think - not to think for you."
- Section 2: AI Possibilities, Limitations of Generative AI and Data Privacy
- Section 3: Skills to use AI
- Case study 3: Psychology dissertations. Students use AI tools for literature search but remain responsible for source validation.
- Case study 6: Nursing decision-making. AI suggested care plans, but students critically review against NMC standards.
2. Be honest and transparent
If you use a GenAI tool as part of your learning or assessment, you must clearly state this on your work. This might involve:
- Describing how you used it, on a cover sheet or reflective note, and
- Submitting your prompts and outputs with your work.
"Using AI may not be cheating - but hiding it could be a breach of academic integrity."
- Section 1: What and where is GenAI?
- Section 2: Limitations of Generative AI
- Cite Them Right: Citing Generative AI
- Academic Misconduct Policy
- Case study 7: MBA strategic planning. Audit trail of prompts and outputs submitted.
- Case study 9: Sports performance analysis. Portfolio logs documenting AI contribution.
- Case study 5: Inclusive use for international students. Reflections on using AI for paraphrasing.
3. Check the facts
GenAI tools are not experts. They can invent information or reinforce harmful stereotypes. Always check:
- Factual accuracy
- Sources, and
- Bias in wording, imagery or assumptions.
"AI writes confidently - but not always correctly."
- Section 2: Limitations of Generative AI and Hallucinations and incorrect information
- Section 4: Using AI for your career
- Case study 8: Data Science exploratory analysis. Students check AI-generated summaries and code against real data.
- Case study 6: Nursing decision-making. Students compare AI outputs with NICE guidelines.
4. Think critically
Using GenAI should help you to practise and build your skills - not bypass them. If you rely too much on AI, you may miss chances to develop your own:
- Voice and ideas
- Academic and digital literacy
- Critical thinking
- Ethical position
"A degree is about learning - not just finishing."
- Section 2: Bias in Generative AI
- Section 3: Skills to use AI
- Case study 4: Design MA projects. Students reflect critically on whether AI enhanced or diluted originality.
- Case study 9: Sports analysis. Students critique AI training recommendations against scientific evidence.
5. Act fairly
All students should have an equal chance to succeed. Not all GenAI tools are free or accessible. You will not be expected to use paid AI tools.
"Where AI tools are used, we endeavour to use tools to which all students have access."
- Section 2: Using AI tools instead of human services
- Section 4: Using AI for your career
- Case study 5: Inclusive use for international students. Scaffolded AI use to address language barriers.
- Case study 8: Data Science. Promotes open-data practices, avoiding unfair advantage.
6. Use with care
You are responsible for what you input into GenAI tools and how you use the outputs. Sharing your personal information, including contact details, health information or personal opinions, might be appropriate in specific contexts but could be abused by some. Sharing personal information of other people without their consent could be a breach of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
"Never share personal and sensitive information with an AI tool."
- Section 2: Data privacy, copyright and environmental impact
- Section 4: Limitations of Generative AI
- Case study 6: Nursing. Explicit reflection on potential harm if AI outputs trusted uncritically.
- Case study 10: ITT curriculum planning. Teacher trainees guided on what information is safe to input.
What you could or should not use AI for in assessed work
Unless your assignment brief tells you otherwise, you can use AI to:
- Generate ideas to stimulate your own academic explorations
- Provide an accessible summary of concepts, ideas or bodies of literature freely available online
- Review and summarise your own notes or those generated in group work or discussion (with consent from your fellow participants)
- Ask for feedback on an assignment structure or plan (while likely simplistic, this could provide a foundation for your own development)
- Provide feedback on your writing style or clarity of expression
- Experiment with different writing styles or levels of formality
- Debug code
- Generate presentation slides from your notes
- Formulate practice questions for the Q&A part of a presentation or project pitch
Conversely, it is inappropriate to make any use of GenAI that creates an unfair academic advantage or passes off the work of others as if it were your own. You are responsible for deciding how you respond to your assignment briefs. You must follow the assignment brief which may include further guidance on how AI might be part of that response.
The following usages, which do not make up an exhaustive list, are prohibited. Using AI in these ways will be a breach of academic integrity policy:
- Submitting GenAI generated content without citation of the AI tool or evidence of how you used it (Principles 1 and 2)
- Submitting GenAI generated content as if it were your own work (Principles 1 and 2)
- Paraphrasing text (whether published or the work of another student) in order to pass off the work of others as your own (Principles 1 and 2)
- Translating into English the work of another person originally published in another language, without acknowledgement and citation of the original source (Principles 3 and 4)
- Translating the majority of your own work into English (Principle 4)
- Fabricating empirical data to use in a research project or other assessment (Principles 2 and 3)
- Generating code for programming without acknowledgement of the source (Principle 2)
- Uploading participant data or responses into GenAI without the participants' consent or ethical approval (Principle 6)
A core value of assessment is to instil academic integrity, ensuring that every graduate is honest, robust and ethical in their learning and research. No matter how you choose to engage with AI, be prepared to demonstrate and explain your approach in accordance with the second principle: Be honest and transparent.
GenAI checklist
When deciding whether and how to use GenAI, you may find it helpful to work through the checklist below (a copy of this is included in the Fit to Submit checklist):
- I have checked my assessment brief, or with my module tutor, and the use of GenAI tools is not prohibited for my assessment type.
- I have completed the Academic Integrity Moodle module to help me avoid unintentional plagiarism.
- If unsure or in need of further guidance, I have spoken to my tutors and/or the learning support teams for help to avoid academic misconduct or poor academic practice.
- I have ensured that no part of my assessment copies or paraphrases GenAI outputs without acknowledgement.
- I have used the correct protocol for citation.
- I have not submitted any personal identifiable information (PII) to a GenAI tool.
- I have not entered into GenAI tools any works that are copyright or the intellectual property of a third party.
- I have evaluated critically any content from GenAI. I have paid particular attention to issues of bias, sensitivity, appropriate content and accuracy.
- I have not relied on GenAI tools as if they were an authoritative or expert scholarly source.
- I have saved copies of GenAI outputs used in preparing my assessment. I know I may be asked to provide these as an appendix to my assessment or as part of any misconduct process.
When in doubt
Ask yourself:
- Why am I using this tool?
- What am I trying to learn?
- Would I be confident explaining this to my tutor?
If you are unsure of:
- How
- Why
- When to use AI
then speak with your module tutor.
Final words
AI is changing how we learn and work. But learning is still about people - your ideas, your thought processes, your growth, and your future. Whether malicious or accidental, use of any technology that breaches Academic Integrity can result in you being investigated for academic misconduct. GenAI can help you learn - but only if you stay in control and take responsibility for the use of these tools and their outputs.
Essential resources and links
York St John University Full Code of Practice for Assessment - this is the full range of policies and procedures that relate to assessment and academic practice. Do not be afraid to ask your programme or module tutor for clarification.
It is essential that you familiarise yourself with the Academic Misconduct Policy.
Your Critical AI Toolkit - this is the Library's most practical and up to date package of learning resources to support you in engaging in AI as part of your learning and development. It will support you to grow your critical and evaluative awareness and help you make decisions about AI in your learning and at work.
The YSJ GenAI Interest Group - a Teams group for staff and students interested in GenAI, to share information, articles, ideas and discussions.
Cite Them Right - alongside citing your sources of research, you are expected to follow the same format for citing your use of AI tools. Cite Them Right provide fast and accurate citation formats.
For researchers
Research policies and documents that support us to deliver the highest quality research in a supportive environment.
Resources and downloads from internal and external sources such as application and consent forms, policies and other useful documents.
