Welcome to the University of Suffolk Artificial Intelligence (AI) hub!
This guide will break down and explain what artificial intelligence tools are currently available, how they work, and take you through some of the best practice principles of using AI efficiently, effectively, and ethically in your academic studies from practical use cases to referencing your AI use in your coursework. You can either navigate to sections of this guide that interest you from the side menu, or you can read more about each section below to get a better sense of what this guide covers and where to find information on different areas of AI.
The generative AI page covers what generative AI is, how it works, and how generative AI tools are created and trained. It will take you through the different generative AI options available, followed by instructions for writing better and clearer prompts (the commands or requests entered into a generative AI tool to answer a particular query). You can also learn about some common prompting techniques, which will help you generate more accurate responses. The section ends with a library of suggested prompts broken down by the type of task you're trying to complete, providing you with a starting point with generative AI tools.
Please note: although the prompts in the prompt library have been screened to minimise the risk that entering them into a generative AI tool would provide you with content that contravenes academic integrity (for example, we do not provide any prompts for using generative AI to write) depending on the assignment or research you are undertaking, it might not be appropriate for you to use them. As an example, if your assignment is to create a research proposal that includes a search table, using AI to generate a search table and pasting it in without reviewing and significantly editing it, might put you at risk of academic misconduct. However, using generative AI to see what a template search table might look like and then completing the assignment for your particular proposal based on a template is acceptable, as long as you can still demonstrate that you have achieved your learning objectives.
There is more to artificial intelligence, its capabilities, and how AI could support your learning and studies than generative AI. There are times when generative AI isn't appropriate for your topic or the assessment you have at hand, but there are other ways you could enhance your learning using non-generative AI tools.
The next page of this guide is dedicated to other AI tools - it includes tables of non-generative AI tools broken down by the type of task you are trying to complete from brainstorming to proofreading. The tables include links to tools and instructions for their use as well as brief descriptions of their capabilities and how they can be accessed. We have prioritised tools that are either free or have a free version that isn't significantly limited.
As with generative AI, make sure you talk to your module leader or research supervisor before you use these tools to ensure they are appropriate for you work!
The ethical AI use page gets into the more conceptual and theoretical parts of AI use in your studies. It explains what "ethical use" means and looks like in academic settings by breaking it down to three main concepts: transparency, integrity, and accuracy. The section also talks you through how to evaluate AI tools to help you decide which tools you should or shouldn't sign up for based on principles of AI ethics as a field of study.
The latter part of the section gets into the complicated nature of AI and art and offers some best practice advice on why you should be vary of using AI to create art and images, but also showcases some more productive ways you could use AI art and image generators - depending on your course, assessment, and learning objectives.
The acknowledging AI use section covers when and how to reference AI tools in assignments and research as well as best practice for acknowledging your AI use more widely. The focus of the page is on ensuring your AI use complies with our academic policies and promotes transparency, integrity, and accuracy. From an ethical standpoint that means you should reference the tools you use, be honest about how you use them, and cross-reference the information you take from them to ensure it is accurate and current.
This section will begin by explaining how to reference AI tools both in-text and in your reference list, then carry on to talk you through other methods such as AI cover sheet disclaimers and appendices that you could use in combination with referencing to promote transparency that offer a deeper level of detail than a simple citation.
Finally, the section will discuss not only what acknowledging AI use looks like but also when you might need to do it.
If you go through this guide in order, by the time you reach the final section you will have an idea of how generative AI works, how to write better prompts, and some tools for particular tasks that take you beyond just ChatGPT. You will also have learnt about what ethical AI use means in an academic context and how to acknowledge and reference your AI use according to academic conventions. If you haven't, you can always go back and explore the previous pages of this guide before moving forward.
This last section of the guide focuses on tasks and applications for using AI in assignments, research, and personal study. On their respective pages you will find the details of live workshops, be able to explore and download workshop slides, and apply your skills with practical exercises for various different areas of study.
Explore the pages below to learn more about AI for: