Newcastle University AI Policy

Has your module leader specified in the assignment brief whether

you may use Generative AI in the preparation of your assessed work?

Check with your module leader and School guidance.

If there is not specific guidance for the assignment take

the University wide approach. The work you submit must

be your own. Provide a short acknowledgment statement

about how and when AI has supported your learning, in

addition to providing references when AI has been used

as an information source.

Read the assignment brief carefully to ensure

you use AI in the expected and acceptable way.

Do not assume that you are able to use AI in

the same way across all of your modules.

You are not permitted to use Generative AI

for the creation of your assignment as this

would mean it was not possible to assess

your learning.

Putting the student in front of you: Use short oral defences, presentations, observed assessments, quick code walk-throughs, or “explain your method” interviews to verify student knowledge and ability.

Assessing the process: Mark progress and decision-making in addition to the final product; speak to students, spot-check their work, or use staged submissions or portfolios to continuously assess plans, drafts, responses to feedback, and reflections on choices.

Asking for proof: Require students submit evidence to verify the originality of their work, including raw data, calculations, notebooks, test outputs, or design sketches.

Keeping it in-class: Use lab work, field work, or in-person problem-solving, writing, and collaborative activities to anchor and verify larger take-home pieces.

Observed exams require students to complete one or more authentic tasks related to their discipline or future employment, which are assessed (usually by multiple examiners) to a well-defined and inclusively designed rubric. Students can also be interviewed after completing their tasks, with assessment taking the form of an oral exam. This approach explores student understanding of related principles and the application of knowledge.

As University students you need to be aware of the potential uses of AI, how it can enhance your learning, while being cautious about becoming over reliant on AI to the detriment of your own academic development. It is important to be familiar with the limitations of the tools and the potential to slip into poor academic practice. Developing your Artificial Intelligence Literacy is going to be vital to successfully engage with these tools critically.

For example, to gather information, to aid your understanding of a concept, topic or course materials, to generate new ideas or plan your writing, to check facts, or to analyse data

Sometimes you know what you want to say but aren't sure how to phrase it in a message or email. AI can help with this. Try creating a prompt where you describe the points you want to make in a natural tone and ask the tool to phrase it as a more professional and concise email.

Do be cautious though, as Generative AI tends to create verbose text, in an overly flowery way. Remember that the recipient is expecting a message from you, as a form of personal communication, so do not lose your own voice in AI generated messages which come across as fake.

Plagiarism applies to written work, music, images computer code and ideas.

Use short oral defences, presentations, observed assessments, quick code walk-throughs, or “explain your method” interviews to verify student knowledge and ability.

Where you have used an output created by AI technologies (e.g., ChatGPT, Copilot,

Google Gemini, DALL-E) either as a source of information or in the development of your

work, you must acknowledge this use fully and provide references. Failure to reference

work (including text, images, code and ideas) that are not your own can result in

academic misconduct.

The University recognises that AI tools are increasingly being used by colleagues and students to

support research and research-related activities. Due to the rapidly changing landscape in this area,

the use of AI in developing research proposals and / or data collection, analysis and presentation is

not prescribed in the University’s Research Ethics Policy or ethical review process. However, this

may be subject to change.

Researchers may also consider using AI tools to help identify the ethical, legal and regulatory

requirements of the proposed research. However researchers should be aware that some funders

will be able to identify where AI tools have been used to generate standard text in grant applications,

therefore the use of stock paragraphs is not recommended. External funders may also require

applicants to declare where AI has been used.

Ideally, AI tools should only be used as a starting point to generate ideas, although the output should

always be manually checked for accuracy and tailored to the project prior to submission.

The same advice also applies to University students developing research proposals.

The University recognises that AI tools are increasingly being used by colleagues and students to

support research and research-related activities. Due to the rapidly changing landscape in this area,

the use of AI in developing research proposals and / or data collection, analysis and presentation is

not prescribed in the University’s Research Ethics Policy or ethical review process. However, this

may be subject to change.

It should be noted that the University does not endorse or provide access to any specific AI tools.

Researchers will therefore need to make their own decisions on which platforms to use and fund the

cost themselves. Users must ensure that the products and procedures comply with data protection

legislation and the existing data privacy policies to protect the data. CoPilot in Microsoft Edge

currently meets these requirements – although this will be regularly reviewed by the University’s

Cyber Security Team.

Researchers using AI tools to collect data should also consider whether consent has been given for

the secondary use of any personal and / or sensitive data. For expert guidance on data protection

and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) please contact the Information Governance

Team (email: rec-man@ncl.ac.uk). Consideration should also be given to the provenance of the data

and any potential conflicts of interest declared to ensure transparency.

Although the use of AI tools to generate text to populate sections of the University’s online ethics form

is not prohibited, colleagues and students are reminded that the process of applying for ethical

approval is intended to prompt reflection and can therefore be a useful learning exercise for both early

career and experienced researchers. Applicants should also be prepared to respond to reviewer

feedback on the proposed research design and methodology as well as the ethical implications.

Researchers may also consider using AI tools to help identify the ethical, legal and regulatory

requirements of the proposed research. However researchers should be aware that some funders

will be able to identify where AI tools have been used to generate standard text in grant applications,

therefore the use of stock paragraphs is not recommended. External funders may also require

applicants to declare where AI has been used.

Ideally, AI tools should only be used as a starting point to generate ideas, although the output should

always be manually checked for accuracy and tailored to the project prior to submission.

However, for data protection reasons and to ensure confidentiality, the use

of AI tools to support the ethical review process is not appropriate, and in some cases may constitute

Newcastle University's approach to the use of AI technologies requires you to openly and transparently acknowledge how and why you have used it.

Acknowledgment simply means describing how you have used Generative AI in the process of creating a work for submission. While you may not have used the content directly as a source of information in a quotation or citation, to maintain good academic practice and the fairness of assessment, you must acknowledge this contribution.

Where you have used an output created by AI technologies (e.g., ChatGPT, Copilot,

Google Gemini, DALL-E) either as a source of information or in the development of your

work, you must acknowledge this use fully and provide references. Failure to reference

work (including text, images, code and ideas) that are not your own can result in

academic misconduct.

If your module leader has indicated that you are required to submit a detailed acknowledgement outlining all tools used, prompts and output, follow this guidance.

For example:

* I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url> to generate information for background research and at the drafting stage of the writing process with the creation of an outline structure for this essay.

* I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url> to identify improvements in the writing style.

* I acknowledge the use of <insert name(s) and url> as an information source to generate materials that were included within my final assessment in my own words.

Any work that you submit for assessment must be your own. Submitting work that has been generated wholly or in part by an AI tool or another person would be considered academic misconduct.

- Unacknowledged inclusion of content, including text and

images, generated by artificial intelligence (AI) tools or

other knowledge based systems

- Advice and

Guidance only

- Academic

Misconduct Noted

- Warning

- A requirement to resubmit the assessment (or an

alternative) within timescales determined by the

Chair of the Board of Examiners.

- A requirement to resubmit the assessment (or an

alternative) within timescales determined by the

Chair of the Board of Examiners but must be passed

to progress on the programme.

- A requirement to resubmit a project proposal or

progress report within a defined timescale

(Postgraduate Research Students only)

- A requirement to make amendments to research

data or thesis submitted for examination

(Postgraduate Research Students only)

Take a look at our Writing an Effective Assessment Brief to see examples of how to include AI guidance in your assignment and coursework briefs, which you are encouraged to copy and customise for your context.

There are many tools emerging on the market which claim to assist with the marking of essays and automated provision of feedback. Newcastle University’s AI working groups are currently exploring these platforms and how – if recommended – they can integrate with current systems. In the meantime, colleagues are reminded to review our AI Boundaries of Use guidance and only use AI where permitted for marking and feedback.

It should be noted that the University does not endorse or provide access to any specific AI tools.

Researchers will therefore need to make their own decisions on which platforms to use and fund the

cost themselves. Users must ensure that the products and procedures comply with data protection

legislation and the existing data privacy policies to protect the data. CoPilot in Microsoft Edge

currently meets these requirements – although this will be regularly reviewed by the University’s

Cyber Security Team.

Will all students be able to access and use the platform without restriction and without needing to provide personal, sensitive or confidential information? Consider that some platforms have age requirements which may affect stage 1 students.

However, for data protection reasons and to ensure confidentiality, the use

of AI tools to support the ethical review process is not appropriate

Newcastle University’s AI working groups are currently exploring these platforms and how – if recommended – they can integrate with current systems.

Boundaries of Use Our AI Boundaries of Use guidance promotes responsible AI innovation and experimentation within safe and defined limits.

The University Research and Innovation Committee has oversight of all matters relating to research integrity.