Encouraging Ethical and Effective AI Use in Scholarship Applications
The National Scholarship Providers Association's recent EmpowerED Conference event on AI and scholarship providers was an eye-opener, offering valuable insights into how AI can be effectively integrated into scholarship processes. As we embrace this technology, it's important to encourage students to learn how to use AI effectively, as their educations and careers depend on it. With this in mind, here are some ideas sourced from presenter Elisabeth Bertram, founder of consulting practice EBCC, on how scholarship providers can support and promote the responsible use of AI in the application process, rather than penalizing it.
Use AI as a Creative Partner: Encourage students to use AI as a brainstorming tool to organize ideas, generate outlines, and develop essay structures that reflect their goals, experiences, and values. By working with AI as a creative partner, students can create a strong foundation for their essays without sacrificing their unique perspective.
Refine and Polish: AI is an excellent resource for refining grammar, structure, and style, making applications clearer and more readable. Let students know they can rely on AI to polish their work, helping them focus on content and expression. It’s about elevating their ideas, not replacing them.
Reflect and Deepen Insights: Suggest that students use AI to pose thought-provoking questions that help them dive deeper into their achievements and goals. For example, they might ask AI for prompts about challenges they’ve overcome or specific moments that shaped them. This reflective use can make their essays richer and more meaningful.
Personalize and Avoid Clichés: Encourage students to use AI to highlight any generic or vague language and replace it with specific, personal stories. For instance, if AI flags a generic phrase, students can use it as an opportunity to expand on unique experiences, demonstrating their individuality.
Enhance Writing Skills: Position AI as a learning tool that strengthens writing and analytical skills. For example, by using AI suggestions to refine sentence structure or provide more detail, students can grow as writers while improving their applications. This can make the writing process both educational and impactful.
Transparency in AI Use: To promote honesty, invite students to disclose how they used AI (e.g., “AI assistance was used to check grammar and spelling”) if they incorporated it in their applications. This transparency ensures they maintain integrity while showing they’re mindful of their AI use.
Organizing Ideas and Outlining: AI can help students structure their thoughts before they begin writing by creating an outline based on key points they want to convey. Encourage them to use AI for this purpose, showing how a structured approach can make their story more compelling.
Pilot a Self-Reflection Process: Suggest students prompt AI to help them explore significant personal experiences or achievements by generating reflective questions. These responses will give them insight into what makes their story unique and valuable, which they can use to make applications more impactful.
Use AI for Enhanced Self-Editing: Encourage applicants to view AI as a second set of eyes, helping them revise their work, clarify ideas, and find opportunities to add detail. They’ll not only create better applications but also build a habit of careful review that will serve them in academics and beyond.
Harnessing AI for Scholarship-Specific Questions: If your application has specific essay prompts or questions, suggest that students use AI to brainstorm and outline responses tailored to these areas. By aligning their use of AI with the focus of the scholarship, students can create responses that are both relevant and insightful.
By encouraging students to integrate AI responsibly, scholarship providers can foster a growth mindset, helping students develop key skills while creating authentic, meaningful applications. Embracing AI as part of the application process prepares students for a future where these tools will be essential.
Students First Consulting, in collaboration with Elisabeth Bertram, is working with scholarship providers to ethically and effectively incorporate AI into their programs and organizations. Schedule a consultation with us to discover how we can assist you in navigating AI for your team and enhancing the support you provide to the students you serve. Together, we can harness the power of AI to foster transparency, accessibility, and success in scholarship administration.
