iLearn Engineering Policy on:

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools

Use of AI  -  (e.g. ChatGPT, Google Gemini etc during your course)

At iLearn Engineering we recognise the development of AI tools such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini amongst others. These tools provide a difficult balancing act for an online college such as iLearn Engineering. On one hand, we absolutely recognise the value that these tools can provide to a student's learning and understanding of topics, however we also need to protect the academic credibility of the qualifications that we deliver. As such we have provided a guide to the allowable use of AI below:

AI can be used for:

• Self research - expanding on topics to provide you with more clarity or a different perspective
• A guide to how to structure reports
• Creating study guides, flashcards, or summaries

AI cannot be used for:

• Directly answering the assignment questions
• Rewording large parts of text from third party sources without citation
• Over-relying on AI for decision-making, critical thinking, or problem-solving

Please note! It's also important to understand that AI is not always accurate! Especially on highly specific or technical topics. Therefore, please use the output with caution, as you should with any single source of information.

Finally, a declaration/reference should be clear on the assignment for where and how AI has been used for the answering of the assignment.

External Verification

Upon successful completion of your course, iLearn Engineering will apply on your behalf for the awarding body to issue the relevant qualification. During this process, the awarding body will request a random sample of your work which will be checked for both tutor quality and consistency from iLearn Engineering, but also any suspected plagiarism or cheating from the student. The awarding body has the final responsibility for awarding the qualification.

Penalties for misuse

Any students suspected of using AI against the iLearn Engineering policy above may face additional internal (iLearn Engineering) checks including (but not limited to) requiring face-to-face (via video call) verbal exams/testing (commonly referred to as a Viva exam). If we are not satisfied that you understand any specific learning outcome, then you will receive a fail grade for either the specific learning outcome (assignment), full unit, or full course depending on the performance on the viva exam. This will override the original grade given on the assignment.

Common reasons for the suspicion of AI use include, but is not limited to:

• The type and use of language is not consistent across different assignments or from other forms of communication (such as emails)
• Completing units in unrealistic timescales
• Clear working out is not provided when appropriate
• AI output format is recognised by our experienced tutors

Fundamentally, iLearn Engineering reserves the right to challenge any student that they believe is using AI to artificially pass the qualification without understanding the required learning outcomes, and we reserve the right to withhold the application of their qualification to the awarding body.

Furthermore, the external qualification awarding body will also use plagiarism software to spot the use of AI and will withhold the issuing of the final award in cases where cheating or plagiarism is suspected.