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All University AI Policies

Stony Brook UniversityAI Policy for Admissions

General Policy:Line-level editing allowedNo disclosure requiredManual review possible
  • PermissionCan you use AI?
    Line-level editing allowed
  • DisclosureMust you disclose AI use?
    No disclosure required
  • ComplianceHow is it verified?
    Manual review possible
01 What this means for your application

Generally safe

  • Ask AI to suggest structural improvements or flag unclear passages after you have written your own draft.
  • Run your drafted essays through AI-powered grammar and spell-check tools to polish surface-level errors.
  • Treat AI like a writing coach — use it to pressure-test your arguments and tighten your prose, while keeping your voice central.

Things to Avoid

  • Resist using AI as a ghostwriter for your PhD Technology, Policy & Innovation statement of purpose; it must not serve as a wholesale substitute for your own writing.
  • Do not rely on AI to generate or rewrite application content if applying to the Simons Summer Research Program — only light grammar checks are permitted there.
02 Policy evidence

  • “An appropriate use of an AI tool is to help you explore admission essay ideas or to refine your admission essay”

    First Year Admissions

  • “AI tools should be used as a resource, similar to resources you may use at your school, e.g. a counselor or teacher”

    First Year Admissions

  • “As with counselors and teachers who are not writing your essay for you, AI should not either”

    First Year Admissions

  • “AI generated or assisted writing samples are not acceptable for consideration”

    First Year Admissions
03 Program-specific policies & specific guidelines

  • Creative Writing BFA

    P4 • AI use prohibitedD0 • No disclosure requiredC2 • Uses screening tools

    “AI generated or assisted writing samples are not acceptable for consideration”

    View Source

    Applies to: writing samples

  • Simons Summer Research Program

    P3 • Brainstorming onlyD0 • No disclosure requiredC0 • No compliance stated

    “The use of an AI tool (including large language models) to generate or rewrite application content is not permitted”

    View Source

    Applies to: application content

  • PhD in Technology, Policy and Innovation

    P2 • Line-level editing allowedD0 • No disclosure requiredC0 • No compliance stated

    “AI may not be used as a wholesale substitute for the statement of purpose”

    View Source

    Applies to: statement of purpose

Allowed Uses

  • exploring admission essay ideas
  • refining admission essays
  • brainstorming
  • grammar and spelling checks

Not Allowed

  • AI writing the essay for you
  • wholesale AI-generated drafts
  • AI-generated or AI-assisted writing samples (Creative Writing program)
04 Sources verified

Confidence: HighLast verified: 2026-04-01
05 Policy summary

  • The Creative Writing BFA is a strict outlier: AI-generated or AI-assisted writing samples are entirely prohibited and subject to AI detection compliance, making it one of the most restrictive program-level policies on campus.

  • Stony Brook University hub classification: (P2/D0/C1) — use program-specific pages when policies differ within the institution.

  • The Simons Summer Research Program narrows AI use further — applicants may only use AI for grammar and spelling checks, not to generate or rewrite any application content.

06 Additional context

Stony Brook maintains an explicit AI policy on its first-year admissions page allowing AI for exploration and refinement of essays but requiring the final work to be the student's own. AI is compared to a counselor or teacher resource. This guidance extends to Honors Programs and Simons STEM Scholars essays. The Creative Writing BFA has a strict (P4) prohibition on AI-generated or assisted writing samples with AI detection compliance. The Simons Summer Research Program separately prohibits AI for generating or rewriting application content but permits grammar/spelling checks. The PhD in Technology, Policy & Innovation program states AI may not be a wholesale substitute for the statement of purpose. No AI disclosure requirement found anywhere. No explicit compliance mechanism stated for general admissions essays beyond the policy language itself. The general admissions policy is unchanged from the previous September 2025 review. Compliance downgraded from (C2) to (C1) because the AI detection mention applies specifically to the Creative Writing program, not general admissions essays.

07 Schools with similar policies

Fordham University

Line-level editing allowedNo disclosure requiredManual review possible

Babson College

Line-level editing allowedNo disclosure requiredManual review possible

University of Rochester

Line-level editing allowedNo disclosure requiredManual review possible

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