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Applying to grad school can present challenges for studious undergrads and employed workers alike. That’s because applications to set you apart from other applicants take time and effort. This could seem an arduous task, especially because most grad students apply to multiple schools .
But don’t fret! This article lists AI apps and tools designed for a more efficient grad school application process.
What is an AI app and how can it help? From research and data collection to essay outlines, artificial intelligence apps could help in ethical, effective ways. Let’s look at how you can put them to work in your application process.
What is an AI app?
An AI application works like a computer version of a human mind in action. That’s because AI computer programs are designed to simulate human behavior. Robots serve as a familiar and basic example. What’s an AI like in action? You may have chatted with a bot on a website’s customer service platform.
Although customers may unmask their robot status quickly, they still serve a purpose. For instance, the bot’s primary job filtering customers into helpful channels. Companies find AI useful for reasons like this. In fact, more than 90% of companies surveyed report that AI has returned a positive result on their investment.
AI apps often work as a shortcut for specific user tasks to help make us more efficient. Just as in the case of a customer service bot, where AI may be designed to send you to the right representative to address your issue. The way we use it determines how useful, productive, and ethical AI can be.
To understand this better let’s look at the history of AI in a brief outline.
- 1950 – Alan Turing introduces the famous Turing Test . This experiment investigates the notion of machine intelligence and seeks to find proof either for or against it.
- 1955 – John McArthy shortens Artificial Intelligence to “AI” and the term catches on.
- 1961 – Inventor George Devol patents the first industrial robot.
- 1964 – Joseph Weizenbaum invents a chatbot named ELIZA.
- 1998 – Dr. Cynthia Breazeal creates Kismet , the robot with emotions.
- 2014 – Amazon introduces AI Alexa, which becomes virtual assistant to millions.
- 2022 – OpenAI brings Chat GPT-3 into the mainstream, disrupting and evolving the business world.
From this history we can see that AI developed as a progressive build toward simulating human behavior. It started with pure intelligence and testing that out. Then AI’s progress shifted into the sensory realm. Robots interacted with humans. Just like we do, these robots could touch, talk with, and maybe even relate to us.
In the 2000s AI started serving us as an articulate personal assistant of sorts. This evolved into AI that can even help us do our work better. Along with multiple benefits, many workers have started to wonder if AI might take their jobs someday.
AI has proven to be efficient and economical. It can tell you the weather report or dig up trivia in seconds. But, thanks to innovation, now AI can do much more for you. Let’s investigate how AI provides research and tools that could help you apply to grad school.

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<a href="https://www.gradschools.com/get-informed/student-guide/what-is-an-ai-to-help-me-apply-to-grad-school">The History of AI</a><strong>Courtesy of gradschools.com</strong></p><a href="https://www.gradschools.com/get-informed/student-guide/what-is-an-ai-to-help-me-apply-to-grad-school"><img alt="What is an AI" border="0" src="https://www.gradschools.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/gs-ai-infog-1-446x1024.png" width="800" /></a></p>
How does Artificial Intelligence work for Research?
The thoughtful research needed for a grad school application takes patience and time. AI could help alleviate some of the stress inherent to the process. There may be factors to consider first, though. What is an AI drawback? Some who use AI have been accused of plagiarism.
Others have found outdated or even wrong information using AI. These challenges can be avoided because they aren’t inherent to artificial intelligence. Issues can arise when you don’t know how to use AI with care. Below we share practices that may help with using AI for better results.
Is using AI plagiarism?
AI can answer queries and provide research to help in writing reports, essays, and even structuring outlines. The results AI offers often come in essay or outline form. Is using AI plagiarism if you present the essays or outlines AI provided as if they were yours? Yes. But the information within them may help in constructing your own work.
When looking for ideas or structural guidance, AI could show you options. In outline form, the order and grouping of AI results may spark your creativity. If you create your own unique version of an essay or outline, using AI isn’t unethical.
After all, research involves reading many outlines and essays to help build a story. It’s not reading AI that’s plagiarism. Copying it verbatim or close to it …that’s plagiarism. Using AI could help with constructing a grad school essay and fact finding for it. But facts and data may sometimes present challenges when it comes to using AI.
What is AI good for?
Artificial intelligence can help in many ways. But what is AI good for when it comes to grad school applications? It’s especially helpful for summarizing large amounts of data into bite-size chunks. But it’s also crucial to note that some AI apps have better sourcing and are more reliable than others.
When citing facts or data, it’s important that information is accurate and up to date. Some AI tools are outdated. Others draw from the entire internet without regard for verification or sourcing. Luckily, you can check for reliable sources and use tools with the strongest results.
How to use AI for Grad School Applications
Grad school applications typically have several components. These may include a letter of intent along with the application itself, and often a personal essay. Each section plays a critical role in representing you to a potential grad school. Below are strategies and resources for using AI to help present your strengths throughout the application.
Smart strategies for using artificial intelligence apps
How artificial intelligence works for you depends on the way you use it. For a grad school application, you may engage AI apps to make the process more efficient and ethical.
A few simple strategies could help you take advantage of AI tools to create your strongest possible grad school application.
Ethical practices:
- Some AI apps may help make ethical practices easier. For instance, a research app with data findings unaffected by advertising could provide unbiased results than one with results attached to ad dollars.
- Vetting your AI apps for ethical practices might help you create a sound and secure grad school application. This may include checking for reliable sources.
- You might also hold yourself accountable with careful editing of your work when using AI for writing. AI can be used ethically for inspiration and organization as long as it’s done with thoughtful care rather than copied.
Efficient methods:
- You could stack AI apps to develop a robust creative process. For instance, you may use one AI app to help generate topic ideas. Then you could find another to research how relevant they are to your grad school program.
- Compose specific and relevant queries to find the most salient results. Specificity could help prevent sifting through pages of research. Detailed AI research queries typically narrow the field of results down to more useful, succinct results.
- Find the right AI app for the job. For instance, check out our list of AI apps below to determine which one might work best for each section of your grad school application.
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What AI app is everyone using
From fee-laden tools to free resources, AI apps may come and go with market trends. But some have gained acclaim with researchers, academics, and professionals. Let’s explore five examples along with their pros and cons.
PDFgear
This AI app works as a free PDF reader. It sorts and organizes source pages via search. Specifically, the built-in summarizer extracts key information to locate paragraphs and sentences at your request.
Pros: Free. Helpful tools for editing PDF files with text replacement and rewriting capabilities.
Cons: Doesn’t provide fillable PDF templates. Editing tools may be glitchy or challenging -not that user friendly.
Consensus:
This web index that scans peer-reviewed research to extract the main conclusions from each one. This gives the user admittance to material from established researchers faster and easier than reading through whole studies.
Pros: The findings have supported data from peer-reviewed studies. No advertisements are included. There’s a free version and student discount for upgrades.
Cons: It may be challenging for some users to construct queries that are just the right balance between too vague and too specific for optimal results.
Scite:
Scite helps users create and format citations for sound information sources. It can also scan your work and check the validity of your references.
Pros: Easy to use with a wide variety of sources available.
Cons: Fees after a 7 day free trial.
Elicit:
This AI app can automate the process of your research without user input of specific keywords. For research when you haven’t narrowed down your topic quite yet.
Pros: Free. One of the few AI apps that allows users to search without precise keywords.
Cons: Doesn’t allow users to save their work. Make sure to capture it on your end and don’t rely on the app to save for you.
Trinka:
This proofreader and sentence structure checker can help polish any writing.
Pros: All inclusive, it’s designed to check grammar, spelling, syntax, optimal word choice and even tone.
Cons: There are limited citation styles included. So, you may need an additional app if citing sources.
Conclusion
Consider what is an AI app that might help in your grad school applications. Whether checking essay grammar or editing the PDF in the actual application, AI could make it easier for you to apply. Best of all, AI might even help elevate the quality of your application. Why not check out grad schools below and put them these resources to work in your applications? Get matched today.