Ninety-four per cent of students use AI for assessed work. Universities are still debating whether to allow it.

HEPI's third annual generative AI survey found adoption has risen from three per cent in 2024 to 94 per cent this year. Twelve per cent of students are now directly including AI-generated text in submitted work. Only 36 per cent feel their institution encourages the technology.

By Wistl Editorial · 8 May 2026 · Higher Ed

HEPI's Student Generative AI Survey 2026 (Report 199), based on 1,054 full-time UK undergraduates surveyed by Savanta in December 2025 and co-authored by Rose Stephenson and Charlotte Armstrong, found that 95 per cent of students now use AI in at least one aspect of their studies and 94 per cent use generative AI to help with assessed work. Three years ago that figure was three per cent. The survey is sponsored by Kortext. The speed of adoption, the authors write, is extraordinary. The data does not describe students uniformly using AI to avoid effort. Sixty-eight per cent believe AI skills ar