WASHINGTON, D.C. — New research from the Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2026 State of Higher Education study finds that more than half (57%) of U.S. college students are using artificial intelligence in their coursework at least weekly, including about one in five who say they use it daily. Male students report more frequent AI use than female students, particularly in the case of daily use (27% vs. 17%). By major, students in business, technology and engineering programs are the most frequent AI users compared with those in other fields of study. Rates of AI use are similar among students pursuing associate and bachelor’s degrees.
These results are from the Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2026 State of Higher Education study, conducted via web Oct. 2-31, 2025. The survey is based on 1,433 U.S. students, aged 18 to 59, who are pursuing an associate degree and 2,368 students pursuing a bachelor’s degree. Respondents were recruited from an opt-in online panel.
About Half of Students Say School Discourages or Prohibits AI Use
Widespread use of AI among college students occurs even as many report restrictions on its use in the classroom. More than half of currently enrolled students say their school discourages the use of AI (42%) or prohibits it altogether (11%), while about four in 10 say students are encouraged to use AI, either freely (7%) or with limits (35%). Reported policies are largely consistent across associate and bachelor’s degree programs. Majorities of students in technology, vocational and business programs say their schools encourage AI use.
Why Students Use AI: Understand Complex Material and Save Time
Helping them understand complex material is the most important reason college students cite for using AI in their coursework. Nearly nine in 10 students who use AI at least monthly say this is an important reason, including 46% who rate it as extremely important. Saving time on assignments and getting better grades follow closely as key motivations, with large majorities also describing these as important reasons for using AI.
Among students who use AI infrequently or not at all, ethical concerns are the most commonly cited reason for avoiding it, followed by school policies that discourage or prohibit AI use. Concerns about privacy or safety are also frequently mentioned, while a lack of familiarity with how to use AI is the least-cited barrier.
Main Student AI Uses: Help With Coursework, Checking Answers
The most common uses of AI focus on academic support and efficiency. Sixty-four percent say they use AI daily or weekly to get help with coursework they do not understand, and 60% report using it this often to check answers on homework or classroom assignments. More than half say they frequently use AI to edit or improve their writing (54%) or to summarize lectures or notes (54%), while 49% use it to generate new ideas, such as paper topics.
Smaller shares report using AI daily or weekly for doing research for papers (45%), creating images and visualizations (37%), writing papers (36%) or getting career advice (35%).
Bottom Line
Taken together, the findings suggest that AI is already a routine part of college students’ academic work, even as institutional guidance has not fully caught up. A majority of students use AI at least weekly, with similar adoption across two- and four-year programs and higher usage among men and students in business, technology and engineering fields. Yet about half of students say their schools discourage or prohibit AI use, pointing to a gap between how students are using these tools and how institutions are formally addressing them.
Students expect their institutions to prepare them for the world of work upon graduation, which will inevitably include AI, given its proliferation. Schools that fail to provide those experiences will likely produce graduates who are behind in their development of this increasingly relevant skill. Further, the results underscore the importance of clearly defined, consistently communicated AI policies and instructional practices that reflect how students are already engaging with the technology for learning, efficiency and academic support.
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