AI Policy for Honors Theses

An undergraduate Honors thesis represents originality in research or creative work, independent scholarship, and mastery of a field of study. Pursuing an Honors thesis is about the process of learning how to conduct research, engage in scholarship, and communicate ideas. Consequently, below is the AI use policy for the A&S Honors Program as it pertains to the Honors thesis process. Violation of this policy will result in failure to receive Honors, including cancellation of the thesis defense.

Unacceptable uses of AI:

  1. Generative AI tools such as large language models may not be used in the thesis writing process. The undergraduate author is considered the sole author of the thesis and co-authorship can’t be granted to a generative AI model. This means the following actions are forbidden:
    1. You may not ask AI to write any part of the thesis.
    2. You may not input your own writing into a generative AI / LLM program and ask it to re-write the work or suggest changes.
  2. Generative AI tools may only be used in the process of conducting research when the application has been approved by the research advisor, Honors council representative, and thesis committee. All uses in research must be documented and acknowledged (see details below).

Acceptable uses of AI:

  1. Generative AI / LLM may be used in the process of conducting research according to the following guidelines:
    1. The student must discuss how AI will be used with their advisor.
    2. The advisor, Honors Council representative, and thesis committee must agree to the proposed use of AI.
    3. The proposed and agreed upon use must be documented in the thesis prospectus.
    4. The student must document use of AI in the thesis itself. For example: Any work that utilizes AI-based tools must be clearly marked as such, including the specific tool(s) used. For example, if you use ChatGPT-3, you must cite "ChatGPT-3. (YYYY, Month DD of query). "Text of your query." Generated using OpenAI. https://chat.openai.com/” This format may vary by discipline or specific AI tool and should be agreed upon by the student and the thesis advisor.
    5. The student must sign an attestation that will be included as part of the thesis defense form that they have honestly and genuinely reported use of AI in the thesis process.
    6. The student author is responsible for the accuracy of any information provided by AI. Authors must verify any information and citation provided to them by an AI tool.
  2. AI may be used in the generation of images, figures or graphics according to the following guidelines:
    1. The use of AI in image generation, where an “image” is broadly defined as a graph, a schematic, a piece of art, a visual representation of an idea, must be agreed upon by the Honors student and their advisor.
    2. It is expected that the student will adhere to norms in their field of study.
    3. Use of AI must be documented in the thesis prospectus, the thesis itself, and in the attestation of AI usage.
  3. Citation programs may be used.
  4. You may use spellcheck, grammar check, and thesaurus tools to aid in your writing.