College AI Essay Policy Tracker: Top 50 Schools (2026-27)

“Personal statements, supplemental essays, and free responses provide students with a valuable opportunity to have an authentic voice in the college admission process. While students may turn to a variety of resources such as parents/guardians, English teachers, and school counselors in order to generate ideas, the content must be their own. Generative artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT may also serve as a resource, but must only be used as a guide; content must never be directly copied from AI or other sources. The submission of original content not only adheres to the ethical expectations in applying to college, but benefits the applicant by having their authentic personal story valued by the Admission Committee.”

“your writing should reflect your own ideas, experiences, and perspective [...] you should not use AI to draft, write, or generate your responses [...] you should not use AI to rewrite portions of your work or modify your tone [...] you should not use AI or another tool to translate your written work from a different language into English [...] Submitting AI-generated writing (such as copy-and-pasting generated material) or embellishing or falsifying any part of your application is antithetical to Bowdoin's values of honesty and integrity.”

“If you are still wondering whether your use of AI in crafting your application is ethical, ask yourself whether it would be ethical to have a trusted adult perform the same task you are asking of ChatGPT. Failure to comply with the Ethical Use of AI guidelines may result in the rescission of your admission to Caltech.”

“Carnegie Mellon wants to know applicants as individuals, and submitting genuine, authentic application materials can make a significant difference. AI should never replace your unique voice, experiences and personal expression and, if used at all, should only serve as a supplementary tool to enhance your writing (i.e., grammar and spelling checks, suggested structural or vocabulary improvements). Additionally, if the generated content closely resembles published work, there may be a risk of unintentional plagiarism. Carefully consider any and all risks when using generative AI for any part of your application.”

Browser-verified 2026-08-18: undergrad.admissions.columbia.edu/artificial-intelligence is a page about AI as a field of study at Columbia, not an applicant-use policy; the How to Apply hub and FAQs surface no generative-AI policy.

“You can use AI maybe as a thinking partner or a brainstorming tool, but not as the author of your essays... With AI, the way it writes, it just writes in a way that just doesn't sound like a teenager. We want them to have that zip that a teenager has.”

Checked Duke Undergraduate Admissions: main Apply hub (admissions.duke.edu/apply/), the comprehensive admissions FAQ/Resources page (admissions.duke.edu/resources/ — 31 Q&A items covering ED/RD, testing, financial aid, academics, campus/conduct policies, none on AI), What We Look For page (admissions.duke.edu/what-we-look-for/), and an on-site search for 'artificial intelligence' (only returned the Machine Learning & AI academic major, not an applicant policy). No dedicated essays page or AI-specific guidance page exists on the site.

Checked official undergraduate admissions site (uadmissions.georgetown.edu): homepage; /apply/first-year-applicants/application-requirements-and-forms/; /apply/first-year-applicants/application-guidance/; /apply/first-year-applicants/how-to-prepare/; /faq/faq-application-process/; /faq/faq-application-materials/. No mention of AI/ChatGPT/generative AI on any of these pages (confirmed via full-page keyword search on several).

“The Common Application identifies the following as a possible form of fraud and violation of its application standards: 'submitting plagiarized essays or other written or oral material, or intentionally misrepresenting as one's own original work: (1) another person's thoughts, language, ideas, expressions, or experiences or (2) the substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform, technology, or algorithm.'”

mitadmissions.org: homepage nav, /apply/, /apply/firstyear/, /apply/firstyear/essays-activities-academics/, /help/faq/, /policies/, /apply/process/; site-restricted search on mitadmissions.org for 'artificial intelligence' and 'ChatGPT' returned zero relevant results (only unrelated MIT Media Lab / MIT News research articles on other subdomains)

“NYU does not use AI detection technology as part of the review process. We trust that applicants are submitting their original work and expect prospective students to uphold the same practices and standards as all NYU students, when incorporating AI in their academic work. While applicants may utilize AI as a tool during the college application process, their final application submission should be their authentic creation.”

Checked Pomona College Admissions: Applying to Pomona overview (pomona.edu/admissions/apply), Admissions Decisions FAQ, Valued Qualities page, Application Overview page, Paths to Apply page, Resources hub and its Counselors/Parents-Families/Work-Volunteer subpages, Current Applicants page, and a search of pomona.edu/news for AI-related admissions articles. No AI/ChatGPT/generative AI guidance found on any official admissions page.

Checked Rice Office of Admission: official FAQ page (admission.rice.edu/frequently-asked-questions — covers test scores, essays/materials, recommendations, special populations, waitlist, financial aid; no AI section), Apply overview page, and the First-Year Domestic Applicants page. No AI/ChatGPT/generative AI guidance found.

“we expect to learn about you and how you think, which means you are not submitting work that has been substantially created by AI or another person. [...] Any assistance with writing comes at the beginning or end of the process — such as brainstorming ideas for essay topics or asking for feedback on readability, spelling, and mechanics.”

admissions.berkeley.edu/apply-to-berkeley/application-resources/personal-insight-questions/, .../application-tips/, admissions.berkeley.edu/application-faqs/. Also checked the UC systemwide application site (admission.universityofcalifornia.edu), which governs the shared Personal Insight Questions used by all UC campuses including Berkeley.

Checked: UC system-wide Personal Insight Questions guidance page (admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/how-to-apply/applying-as-a-first-year/personal-insight-questions.html — all UC campuses including UCSD use this shared PIQ guidance; explicitly searched the page text for 'AI', 'artificial intelligence', 'authentic', 'own words', 'alone' with no matches), plus UCSD-specific admissions FAQ page (admissions.ucsd.edu/faq/) and UCSD 'Why UCSD' / First-Year pages. No AI-specific language found anywhere.

Checked: Freshman Apply hub (admissions.ufl.edu/apply/freshman/), Freshman Requirements page (admissions.ufl.edu/apply/freshman/requirements), and site navigation/footer for a dedicated FAQ or essay-guidance page (none exists — UF relies on the Common App essay and has no UF-specific essay-writing page). No mention of AI, ChatGPT, or generative AI found anywhere checked.

“Your essays should tell your story, in your words. AI tools can be helpful when used thoughtfully, such as for brainstorming, outlining, proofreading, or organizing information. We recognize these tools may be especially useful for applicants who have limited access to application guidance. However, your application should reflect your own ideas, experiences, and authentic voice. Do not copy and paste AI-generated text or submit work that does not represent you.”

“University of Notre Dame's Office of Undergraduate Admissions has adopted the Common Application's Fraud Policy, which prohibits 'Submitting plagiarized essays or other written or oral material, or intentionally misrepresenting as one's own original work: (1) another person's thoughts, language, ideas, expressions, or experiences or (2) the substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform, technology, or algorithm.' ... applicants may use AI tools for 'spelling and grammar review, or brainstorming support before writing.' However, 'the content of all essays, short answer questions, activities, and any other material submitted must be an applicant's own work.' ... using 'content generated, drafted, or substantially written by artificial intelligence tools or other text-generating software may result in the revocation of your offer of admission or potential expulsion.'”

admission.usc.edu/prospective-students/how-to-apply/, .../first-year-students/, .../what-we-look-for/, admission.usc.edu/admitted-students/faq/, admission.usc.edu/admitted-students/academic-policies/, admissionblog.usc.edu (blog homepage only — individual post search not accessible).

“We are interested in who you are, and we value what you have to say. While AI tools can be helpful in generating ideas and centering your thoughts, essays and personal statements that rely more on AI than your original thoughts miss the mark in one incredibly important way: they lack your voice, your ideas, and your very personal reflection on how your experiences have shaped you. The essays and written supplements are your opportunity to express what is important to you in your own words. Generative AI may play a minor role in your final product by helping you brainstorm essay topics or check for grammar mistakes, but we ask that you do not cut and paste any part of your essay or personal statements from an AI tool. All final submitted materials should be your original work. As an applicant to UVA, we ask you to sign an honor statement before submitting the Common Application because the UVA community is anchored by trust and integrity. Our students pledge not to lie, cheat, or steal, and we ask the same of our applicants. By agreeing to this honor statement, you are pledging that the application materials you submit to us are your original work, not primarily a product of AI. Thank you for trusting us with your words and your stories.”

“We will not disqualify an applicant found to have used or suspected of using AI in their admissions essays, nor are we running essays through any system to detect if AI was used. However, we strongly discourage students from simply feeding AI a prompt for their essay, as it denies you the opportunity to help us better understand why you would be a good fit for UW–Madison. Our goal is to hear from you about your academic aspirations and interest in joining our community here in Madison, Wisconsin.”

Checked: First-Year Students admissions page (admissions.wfu.edu/become-a-deacon/first-year/, includes admissions-requirements FAQ content), main Apply page (admissions.wfu.edu/apply/), 'From the Forest' admissions blog (admissions.wfu.edu/connect/blog/, scanned for AI/ChatGPT post titles), and the site FAQ. No mention of AI, ChatGPT, or generative AI found.

Checked official admission site (wellesley.edu/admission-aid): /faqs (full admission FAQ); /apply/first-year-applicants; /apply/application-advice (Wellesley's dedicated essay-writing advice page). No mention of AI, ChatGPT, or generative AI on any of these pages.

“Using an AI platform to review one's grammar or spelling, or to seek general advice or topic suggestions at the start of the writing process does not constitute application fraud. [Submitting] the substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform, technology, or algorithm [is considered application fraud].”