Skip to Main Content

Research and Communications (Brown and Lepp)

This guide is primarily for use by 8th grade research students but contains helpful information for all students.

What the MBA Honor Code has to say about AI / ChatGPT

What does the MBA Honor Code have to say about a student's use of ChatGPT and AI? 

The MBA Honor Code begins: "The Honor Code prohibits any attempt to deceive in a school or school-related event. A student must not lie, cheat, steal, or act dishonorably...A student may neither falsify results nor use any source without giving proper credit."

A student's use of ChatGPT (or any similar AI) falls under ALL of the Honor Code's language forbidding "any attempt to deceive," "cheat, "act dishonorably," and "use any source without giving proper credit." Furthermore, MBA's AI policy is that use of it is considered not one's own work. 

If a teacher allows the use of AI but in a limited way, for example if AI could be used but only to generate an outline for a theme, then the AI source must be cited. Otherwise, the MBA Honor Code has been violated. If a student goes on to also use AI in the writing of the theme itself, then the MBA Honor Code has been violated. 

Keep in mind, teachers are on alert to detect a student's use of AI and may have even specifically designed your assignment to make using AI particularly unhelpful to you. Why take the risk?