AI Policy for Theses
AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, Cursor) are welcome in your research workflow, provided you follow the rules on allowed/prohibited use, disclosure, and good practice outlined below.
Transparency is a core principle: you must state which generative models you used, for what purpose, and to what extent at every stage of thesis production (drafting, coding, analyzing, revising).
⚠️ Important
Failing to disclose AI assistance can be treated as attempted deception. Academic integrity demands that you clearly separate your own intellectual contribution from machine support and continuously ensure the technical and factual correctness of all submitted work.
AI assistance never diminishes your responsibility for accuracy, originality, and ethics.
🚦 What You May and May Not Do
For quick reference, the rules follow a traffic‑light system. If an activity is not listed, ask me before you proceed.
✅ Allowed, No Disclosure Needed
Uses described in this section leave no AI‑generated text, code or images in the submitted thesis and therefore do not require a declaration:
- Clarifying concepts or unfamiliar terminology (private study).
- Translating literature solely for your own comprehension.
- Running standard spell‑checking (e.g. correcting typos, commas) using word processor tools.
Note
These uses are strictly for private study or basic correction. Any idea, sentence, or visual that originated from AI and is kept in your thesis — even in altered form — must be disclosed (see Yellow Zone).
🟡 Allowed with Mandatory Disclosure
If any AI output appears — verbatim or paraphrased — in thesis materials, you must list it in the "Declaration of AI Tool Usage".
| Typical Purpose | Examples that must be disclosed |
|---|---|
| Planning & structure | Suggested outlines, headings, logical section order |
| Language & style | Rewriting your self-written paragraphs, tone adjustments, and cohesion improvements beyond basic spelling checks. (Note: Using AI to polish your draft is allowed; letting AI generate the initial draft is prohibited). |
| Research support | Search‑term proposals, summaries of abstracts, metadata extraction |
| Code assistance | Generated snippets, bug fixes, unit tests, refactoring. (See detailed note below regarding Agents vs. Autocomplete). |
| Visuals & data | Auto‑created diagrams, plots, exploratory notebooks |
| Brainstorming | Examples, analogies, counter‑arguments that survive editing and are included in the thesis |
Rule of Thumb
If any text, code, figure or data from an AI tool survives into your submitted files — even after heavy editing — you must disclose it.
Even when using tools from this zone, the intellectual heavy lifting — problem definition, methodology, critical analysis, data interpretation and final conclusions — must be entirely your own.
🤖 Coding Note: Agents vs. Autocomplete
- Autocomplete (e.g. Copilot): For "always-on" completion, a general declaration is sufficient (e.g. "Used for syntax completion in Chapters 3-5").
- Agentic Coding (e.g. Claude Code, Cursor Composer): If you use AI agents to generate entire modules, refactor classes, or write complex logic from instructions, you must explicitly disclose which components were AI-generated. (e.g. "The authentication module in
auth.pywas scaffolded by Claude Code").
⛔️ Prohibited
The following uses violate this policy and will be treated as academic misconduct:
- Submitting AI‑generated text, code, figures or data without disclosure.
- Letting AI draft substantial thesis sections with only superficial edits.
- Accepting AI‑generated data analyses or statistical results that you have not independently verified.
- Citing sources or references suggested by AI tools without verifying the actual existence and content ("hallucinated" references).
- Uploading confidential data, unpublished results or copyrighted material to public AI services without written consent.
⛔️ No Ghostwriting
AI may assist at the idea or outline level, but writing of core sections must reflect your own formulation and critical thinking. Generating full paragraphs and making only cosmetic changes is not acceptable.
🔒 Intellectual Property & Data Protection
Data Protection
Never share personal data or confidential project information with cloud AI services. Prefer on‑premise solutions or local models when feasible.
Examples of confidential data include identifiable personal information, internal documents from companies, sensitive research datasets, or unpublished findings from collaborative projects.
Copyright
Do not feed course slides, proprietary datasets, or unpublished papers into public AI tools unless you have written approval from the rights holder.
📝 Disclosure Format
Add a "Declaration of AI Tool Usage" before the bibliography. This declaration should give a transparent and honest account of any AI support used during your thesis work. It must include:
- Tools used: Name and version (e.g. ChatGPT-4o, GitHub Copilot Jan 2026).
- Purpose: What the tool was used for (e.g. polishing, coding, diagrams).
- Extent of inclusion: Specific sections or components affected.
- Verification: Confirmation of your validation.
💡 Tips for Evidence
- Avoid vague blanket statements: If you declare usage across large parts of the thesis (e.g. "Chapters 1-5"), be prepared to prove your authorship (e.g. via version history).
- Track your work: Enable "Track Changes" in Word/Docs or use Git commits for LaTeX/Code to document incremental progress.
Example Declaration
You can copy and adapt this template:
I hereby declare that I used the following AI tools during the preparation of this thesis. Their use was limited, transparent, and complies with the AI policy for theses. No AI-generated content beyond what is listed below appears in the submitted version.
Tools Used:
* DeepL Write (Jan 2026)
Used to improve grammar/style in Section 2.3 and 4.1. All revised content was originally written by me and strictly reviewed.
* GitHub Copilot (VS Code, Jan 2026)
Used continuously for syntax completion in Chapter 5. Specifically provided scaffolding for Listing 5.2. All code was reviewed and tested by me.
* Cursor / Claude 4.5 Sonnet (Jan 2026)
Used in "Composer Mode" to refactor the database schema in `models.py`. I verified the SQL output and adjusted constraints manually.
* Gemini (Google, Jan 2026)
Used to draft Figure 6.1 based on my description. The output served as a visual starting point and was redrawn in draw.io.
I confirm that:
* All AI usage is disclosed here to the best of my knowledge.
* All academic decisions and conclusions reflect my own intellectual contribution.
* I have verified the correctness and originality of all content submitted.⚖️ Consequences of Non‑Compliance
Undisclosed or prohibited AI use constitutes academic misconduct and may result in a failing grade, credit revocation, or disciplinary proceedings in line with university regulations.
The policy is reviewed annually or whenever major AI or regulatory changes occur.