Artificial Intelligence in Graduate STEM Education

A professor addresses a lecture hall of students. He's holding a laptop that is open to a screen titled "Deep Learning."

Problem

The extent to which artificial intelligence (AI) has been integrated into graduate STEM education and its impact are unclear.

As graduate schools focus on implementing AI in administrative and academic processes and student experiences, it is increasingly important to understand the AI landscape for graduate education to ensure that emerging AI-based tools are used effectively to promote student success.

With support provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (Grant Number: G-2024-22540), NORC worked with U.S. graduate schools to study how AI innovations enhance graduate education and the graduate education experience, including efforts to broaden excellence in science technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, and ultimately, participation in STEM careers.

Solution

NORC surveyed STEM graduate school deans to produce a comprehensive portrait of AI policies, practices, and motivations.

NORC surveyed deans who work at the top 300 STEM PhD-awarding universities to answer the following questions:

What policies and processes are currently in place or being considered at the institutional level regarding the integration of AI into the management and practice of graduate education?
What drives these policies and processes, and how do they expand excellence?
What community-grounded guidelines can universities use to assess the impact of AI applications to increase success in STEM fields?

To deepen insights from the survey, NORC hosted the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Graduate Education Convening on November 5 and 6, 2025. The convening brought together leaders from across the higher education landscape to:

Explore how AI is being integrated into admissions, curriculum design, student advising, instructional support, and administrative processes
Assess how AI innovations align with or challenge goals related to access, equity, and excellence
Identify key principles and practices for responsibly evaluating and implementing AI applications
Engage institutional leaders in dialogue about their experiences, challenges, and emerging opportunities
Begin developing a community-informed roadmap for responsible, ethical, and equitable AI use across graduate STEM programs

Result

Our study advances understanding of how AI is being applied in graduate STEM education and highlights approaches for promoting fairness and transparency.

With support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, NORC conducted a landscape analysis of emerging AI practices in graduate STEM programs, examining both current applications and the motivations driving their adoption. The project also engaged members of the graduate education community to develop a community-informed roadmap for evaluating AI tools and practices as technologies continue to evolve.

As part of this effort, NORC convened deans, senior administrators, researchers, and other stakeholders in November 2025. The event brought together more than 115 virtual participants and 35 in-person attendees to discuss opportunities, challenges, and considerations for the responsible use of AI in graduate education (see related presentation).

The project culminated in the development of a decision-making framework designed to support thoughtful and equitable AI adoption in graduate STEM programs. A white paper and accompanying research brief provide additional details on the framework and its applications.