Teaching & Learning
- For taught coursework, AI use is controlled at module level rather than uniformly banned or allowed
- Where AI use is allowed, students remain responsible for the accuracy and integrity of their submitted work
- Students must follow the module’s published AI category and any assignment-specific instructions; using AI beyond the permitted category is treated as unacceptable academic practice and may be investigated as unfair practice
The guidance in this document applies to all taught modules and all assessed work at Bangor University, unless there are specific statements to the contrary in module handbooks.
At the start of each module, the module handbook should indicate which of these categories your module and its assignments fall into.
You should ask your module tutor if there is any uncertainty over the use of AI software in preparing your work.
All categories place a responsibility on students to ensure that they review and edit the output from AI software to ensure that the final submission is factually correct and does not contain any plagiarism.
Use of AI software that exceeds the criteria stated in the module handbook and assignment guidance could result in an allegation of unfair practice under Bangor University's academic regulations.
No use of AI software.
No content generated by AI software should be included in your final work and you should not use AI software at any point during the preparation of your work.
A risk based approach to the use of AI software.
You may use AI software to assist in the planning or understanding of the assignment but your final submission should consist only of content created by yourself.
Use of AI software allowed under defined conditions.
The use of AI software should follow any conditions outlined in the assignment guidance or module handbook.
Use of AI software unrestricted.
The use of AI software is unrestricted and no declaration of use is necessary.
- Students are expected to follow module handbook and assignment guidance, and exceeding allowed AI use may trigger unfair practice procedures
- The university’s AI assessment guidance applies to all assessed work, but it does not set a distinct university-wide rule specifically for examinations beyond the module/assignment category system
The guidance in this document applies to all taught modules and all assessed work at Bangor University, unless there are specific statements to the contrary in module handbooks.
At the start of each module, the module handbook should indicate which of these categories your module and its assignments fall into.
Use of AI software that exceeds the criteria stated in the module handbook and assignment guidance could result in an allegation of unfair practice under Bangor University's academic regulations.
- Students are directed to check the module handbook or ask the tutor if unsure
- Bangor permits AI for study support where the relevant module category allows it
- In the risk-based category, students may use AI to help plan or understand an assignment, but the final submission must be their own work; in other modules, the handbook may prohibit any AI use
At the start of each module, the module handbook should indicate which of these categories your module and its assignments fall into.
You should ask your module tutor if there is any uncertainty over the use of AI software in preparing your work.
A risk based approach to the use of AI software.
You may use AI software to assist in the planning or understanding of the assignment but your final submission should consist only of content created by yourself.
No use of AI software.
No content generated by AI software should be included in your final work and you should not use AI software at any point during the preparation of your work.
- The university does not publish a separate institution-wide rule for AI code generation in programming assignments
- Programming-related AI use is governed by the same module-level category system for assessed work, with assignment guidance and module handbooks determining whether and how AI may be used
The guidance in this document applies to all taught modules and all assessed work at Bangor University, unless there are specific statements to the contrary in module handbooks.
At the start of each module, the module handbook should indicate which of these categories your module and its assignments fall into.
The use of AI software should follow any conditions outlined in the assignment guidance or module handbook.
Research
- The university also requires students to follow any school or journal rules and to consult supervisors before use
- AI must not be listed as an author, outputs must be checked for accuracy and bias, and use should be acknowledged where it has materially contributed
- For postgraduate researchers, generative AI may be used to support understanding, editing, formatting, proofreading, and idea generation, but not as a substitute for the researcher’s own scholarly judgement or writing responsibility
Generative AI can support your studies and research by helping with tasks such as understanding complex concepts, summarising literature, improving grammar, formatting text, checking code, and generating ideas.
However, these tools also carry serious limitations and risks. They can generate inaccurate or invented information, reflect biases in training data, and may lead to unintentional plagiarism or breaches of confidentiality.
As a postgraduate research student, you remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical conduct of your work.
You may use generative AI to support:
• Grammar checking and proofreading
• Language editing and formatting
• Summarising reading material (where appropriate and verified)
• Brainstorming ideas or structures
• Drafting non-substantive text (e.g. presentation outlines) with supervisor agreement
You must not:
• Present AI-generated text, analysis, images, or data as your own work
• Rely on AI outputs without checking them carefully
• Use AI tools to replace your own critical thinking, interpretation, or scholarly judgement
• Upload confidential, personal, or unpublished research data into public AI systems
• Use AI in ways that breach copyright, data protection, or research ethics requirements
If you use generative AI in any significant way, you should acknowledge this appropriately in your thesis, dissertation, or outputs, where relevant.
AI tools such as ChatGPT or Copilot must not be listed as authors on research papers or theses.
You should always check:
• School or disciplinary guidance
• Journal or publisher policies
• Funder requirements
• Supervisor expectations
If in doubt, discuss your intended use of AI with your supervisor before using it in your research.
As a postgraduate research student, you are expected to use these tools responsibly, transparently, and critically.
- Bangor allows generative AI to support some research-related tasks only with caution and does not permit researchers to treat AI outputs as inherently reliable
- Public AI systems must not receive confidential, personal, or unpublished research data, and researchers remain responsible for checking outputs and complying with ethics, copyright, and data protection requirements
However, these tools also carry serious limitations and risks. They can generate inaccurate or invented information, reflect biases in training data, and may lead to unintentional plagiarism or breaches of confidentiality.
As a postgraduate research student, you remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical conduct of your work.
You must not:
• Present AI-generated text, analysis, images, or data as your own work
• Rely on AI outputs without checking them carefully
• Upload confidential, personal, or unpublished research data into public AI systems
• Use AI in ways that breach copyright, data protection, or research ethics requirements
- Bangor’s research ethics pages also state that any research involving generative AI or machine learning may require ethics review
- The university requires research involving AI to comply with existing ethics and integrity frameworks rather than creating a wholly separate AI ethics code
- Researchers and postgraduate researchers must use AI responsibly, transparently, and critically, must not breach confidentiality, copyright, data protection, or research ethics requirements, and remain personally accountable for integrity and ethical conduct
As a postgraduate research student, you remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical conduct of your work.
You must not:
• Use AI in ways that breach copyright, data protection, or research ethics requirements
As a postgraduate research student, you are expected to use these tools responsibly, transparently, and critically.
Research requiring ethical review includes any research involving human participants, personal data, human tissue, animals, or potentially sensitive topics. It also includes certain forms of secondary data analysis, internet-based research, and the use of emerging technologies such as generative AI or machine learning where ethical risks may arise.
Misconduct in Research means the fabrication, falsification, plagiarism or deception in proposing, performing or reviewing research, or in reporting research outcomes; or deliberate, dangerous, negligent or reckless deviations from accepted practice in carrying out research; or conduct that falls seriously short of that which is expected in a person by virtue of their position as a researcher, or that causes harm, or creates a significant risk of harm, to people, animals, the environment, or property; or unjustified interference with the integrity of the research record; or misrepresentation of data and/or interests and/or involvement; or misconduct relating to peer review and the improper dealing with allegations of misconduct; and breaches in duty of care or confidentiality, in particular those associated with the improper disclosure of the identity of individuals or groups involved in research without taking due care to protect participants, and where appropriate, to anonymise data; improper conduct in the management of conflicts of interest; and a failure to follow accepted procedures or to exercise due care in carrying out responsibilities for avoiding unreasonable risk or harm to humans; or animals used in research; or the environment; and facilitating of misconduct in research by collusion in, or concealment of, such actions by others.
Academic Integrity
- Disclosure requirements depend on the module’s AI category
- In some modules, students must declare any AI use in a statement attached to the work; in unrestricted-use modules no declaration is required; and postgraduate researchers should acknowledge significant AI use in theses, dissertations, or outputs where relevant
Use of AI software allowed under defined conditions.
The use of AI software should follow any conditions outlined in the assignment guidance or module handbook.
This may include restrictions on the use of AI software as well as how the use should be acknowledged by students in any submitted work.
Use of AI software unrestricted.
The use of AI software is unrestricted and no declaration of use is necessary.
If you use generative AI in any significant way, you should acknowledge this appropriately in your thesis, dissertation, or outputs, where relevant.
Any use of AI software should be declared in a statement attached to your work, including the type of software and what it was used for.
- The provided sources do not set out a specific institutional position on AI detection tools
- Bangor treats misuse of AI as a potential academic misconduct matter under its unfair practice procedures
- If students exceed the AI permissions set in module or assignment guidance, they may face an allegation of unfair practice; the university’s academic integrity rules also define plagiarism broadly enough to cover unattributed AI-generated material represented as the student’s own work
Use of AI software that exceeds the criteria stated in the module handbook and assignment guidance could result in an allegation of unfair practice under Bangor University's academic regulations.
Plagiarism is presenting someone else's work, words, images, ideas, opinions or discoveries, whether published or not, as your own original work, without acknowledging the source, with or without their permission.
Academic misconduct procedures cover all forms of unfair practice, including plagiarism, collusion, contract cheating, and other actions that seek to gain an unfair academic advantage.
Institutional & Administrative
- The available AI assessment documents address student use and module handbook categorisation, but do not set explicit staff-use rules in these areas
- The university’s provided sources do not define a general policy for faculty or staff use of AI in teaching administration, grading, recommendation letters, lesson planning, or communications
not defined
- The provided sources do not identify a university-wide approved-platform list or a broader institutional data-classification framework specific to AI
- Bangor prohibits postgraduate researchers from entering confidential, personal, or unpublished research data into public AI systems and warns that AI use must not breach data protection requirements
You must not:
• Upload confidential, personal, or unpublished research data into public AI systems
• Use AI in ways that breach copyright, data protection, or research ethics requirements
However, these tools also carry serious limitations and risks. They can generate inaccurate or invented information, reflect biases in training data, and may lead to unintentional plagiarism or breaches of confidentiality.
- However, the provided sources do not set out a broader university AI strategy, committee structure, or institution-wide roadmap for AI adoption
- Bangor has an institutional framework for AI use in taught assessment through published categories applied via module handbooks, and it has issued separate responsible-use guidance for postgraduate researchers
The guidance in this document applies to all taught modules and all assessed work at Bangor University, unless there are specific statements to the contrary in module handbooks.
At the start of each module, the module handbook should indicate which of these categories your module and its assignments fall into.
As a postgraduate research student, you are expected to use these tools responsibly, transparently, and critically.
DocuMark: Responsible AI Use for Academic Integrity
Knowing your institution's AI policy is step one. DocuMark helps enforce it fairly by empowering universities to manage AI-generated content, prevent cheating, and support student writing through responsible AI use.
Common Questions About Bangor University's AI Policies
Bangor University has defined AI policies in 12 of 12 categories, with an overall coverage score of 100%.
Disclosure requirements depend on the module’s AI category. In some modules, students must declare any AI use in a statement attached to the work; in unrestricted-use modules no declaration is required; and postgraduate researchers should acknowledge significant AI use in theses, dissertations, or outputs where relevant.
Bangor treats misuse of AI as a potential academic misconduct matter under its unfair practice procedures. If students exceed the AI permissions set in module or assignment guidance, they may face an allegation of unfair practice; the university’s academic integrity rules also define plagiarism broadly enough to cover unattributed AI-generated material represented as the student’s own work. The provided sources do not set out a specific institutional position on AI detection tools.
Bangor prohibits postgraduate researchers from entering confidential, personal, or unpublished research data into public AI systems and warns that AI use must not breach data protection requirements. The provided sources do not identify a university-wide approved-platform list or a broader institutional data-classification framework specific to AI.