STATEMENT FROM THE AMGEN SCHOLARS PROGRAM ON PREPARING APPLICATIONS USING GENERATIVE AI
The landscape of generative AI and its uses in education is rapidly evolving, and we realize Amgen Scholars Program applicants may be thinking about how to leverage these tools to augment the application they submit for admission. At present, there are no specific conditions or restrictions applied to applications for the Amgen Scholars Program. However, Amgen Scholars Program hosts may have more specific guidelines at their institutions, and we encourage applicants to read carefully through application submission instructions for explicit guidance on the use of generative AI beyond the general considerations below. (Please keep in mind that other external fellowships and research programs may have their own rules about how generative AI may or may not be used.)
Regardless of how these tools are used, it is important for applicants to consider the following critical variables in deciding how to employ generative AI, particularly ChatGPT, and whether it could or should be engaged in the development and composition of a dossier:
Specificity:
- Generative AI tools can successfully approach a topic with breadth but are not as successful when attempting to address depth, especially in the context of a research proposal.
- In personal statements, the tools are not very successful making the connection between your interest in a program or fellowship and why you’d make a successful candidate, which requires intense self-reflection in the process of composition.
Veracity:
- Whether a personal narrative or draft research statement, generative AI has been known to fill in gaps with completely fabricated details, such as journal articles that do not exist.
- The place-holder algorithmic enhancement is a particular danger with research proposals, and you MUST be committed to verifying every aspect of a literature search or a premise upon which you are building your own research project.
Authenticity:
- Your voice is a key element that should contribute to the cohesiveness of your dossier. Generative AI tools simply are not set up to capture your voice beyond a very generic analysis and refurbishing of those data.
- Be aware that any data you input into a generative AI tool also could be subject to data mining after the fact.
Creativity:
- In general, generative AI tools can effectively process and regenerate data that already has been collected from many sources.
- However, they cannot yet know the creative ways you may be thinking about a particular research goal or project.
- Generative AI at present cannot convey your uniqueness or memorability as a candidate.
Generative AI tools may be helpful in two specific ways:
- As a general starting point to respond to particular questions on the application, which then should be detailed with more specificity and depth—an important consideration especially for Amgen Scholars Program applicants.
- As an organizational tool for essay responses that contribute to the compositional dynamics of logic and flow, and points to emphasize and where they are placed in the essay.
If you intend to use ChatGPT or other generative AI, please be mindful that your responsibility as an applicant requires a high degree of discernment about what is appropriate content, and, as with any other academic writing, a dedication to fully cite primary sources that are not your own work. If you have questions about how to appropriately use generative AI in your applications, please contact the Global Director of Amgen Scholars at amgenscholarsglobal@harvard.edu . You may also consider seeking guidance from resources at your own institution that oversee academic integrity more broadly.
Gregory A. Llacer
Global Director, Amgen Scholars Program
