How AI Can Be Used Efficiently as a College Student

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Learn how you can use AI as a college student to stay on track

In this new world of AI, it is easy to fall into the trap of allowing yourself to grow accustomed to using AI for everything. Students use it for note taking, homework answers, essay writing, plagiarism, and other ways to pass AI generated works off as their own. What students do not realize is by using AI as a means to pass their courses, they can cheat themselves out of the learning experience. However AI is not the enemy of education. Instead it can actually be a beneficial tool to aid college students in learning material, studying for exams, and even organizing their lives. 

There are a lot of risks that come with using AI in college, but inevitably we do all use it from time to time. But when it comes to using AI for courses, students can use it strategically in a way that aids their learning rather than a way to complete assignments without allowing yourself to put any real thought into them. We are all paying to be here and honestly it would be a waste of money if we stopped thinking for ourselves and allowed AI to do all the heavy lifting. So how can we actually use AI as a tool to guide learning? 

Well, ChatGPT is actually a useful tool for asking clarifying questions about a topic you are having trouble grasping. You can ask AI to explain a topic to you in simpler terms in order to gain a basic understanding. Then you can go on and ask it to give you real life examples. 

Another great way to use AI is while studying for exams. There are many websites where you can use AI to help such as mindgrasp.ai which can provide you with flashcards, quizzes, and quick summaries of topics to help you practice material faster. You can use ChatGPT or Quizlet to insert notes you have taken for a class and ask it to produce practice exams. Practice exams can help prepare you for taking the actual exam. 

An underrated use for AI as a college student is using it as an assistant to manage your personal schedule. Many of us have completely different schedules that change every semester and it can be stressful and time consuming to figure out how to fit everything we need to do into one day. AI can construct a schedule for you based on your needs from day-to-day life. You can do this by inputting your class schedule along with any non-negotiables you want to include, such as downtime, clubs, the gym, or quality time with friends. 

Upcoming AI does not need to be demonized as something that college students need to avoid but rather we should learn how to use it in an effective way that helps relieve some of the unnecessary struggles that come with being a student. College life is stressful enough as it is. Let’s not make it any harder on ourselves! 

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