Writing University of Michigan Law School optional application essay? Use artificial intelligence, please
Two years after the University of Michigan Law School banned applicants from using generative artificial intelligence, the law school is encouraging potential students to use it for a supplemental essay.
Inside Higher Ed has the story.
The next wave of applicants can submit an optional essay requiring students to not only discuss how they use AI now and how that might change in law school but to actually use AI to help write their responses.
The prompt reads: “Essay Ten—To be answered using generative AI: How much do you use generative AI tools such as ChatGPT right now? What’s your prediction for how much you will use them by the time you graduate from law school? Why?”
But the University of Michigan Law School continues to ban using AI for writing personal statements or any of the nine other supplemental essay questions.
Still, the move is an about face for the law school. In 2023, the law school asked applicants to certify that AI was not used for drafting answers. In fact, false statements could result in the cancellation of an admissions offer or expulsion or rescinding a degree, according to the certification language.
AI use is a hot-button topic in law as law firms grapple with deciding whether, how and when they will use the quickly evolving technology known for hallucinating bad information.
The ABA’s 2024 Legal Technology Survey Report shows that 30% of all firms report using AI tools. Of those surveyed, 13% think that AI is mainstream in the legal profession—a significant jump from 2023, when just 4% thought this. They expect that AI will continue to emerge, and 45% think that it will become mainstream within the next three years.
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