Checked on 17 October 2026. For each of the seven universities and five technological universities: what the institution's own official text says about generative AI in assessed work, theses and dissertations, with a link to the source on the institution's site, the date we read it and a short verbatim quote. Where a text applies only to research degrees or only to taught modules, that is stated.
Summaries in our own words. Quotes and sources per institution are below.
| Institution | Use, according to the source | Acknowledge or declare | Applies to | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trinity College Dublin | Programmes and schools set their own rules. In postgraduate research, only after consulting your thesis supervisor and with their approval. | Yes: acknowledge and reference any use. | College statement for all students and researchers. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| UCD | Only where the module coordinator permits it. AI-generated content without explicit permission and attribution is not allowed. | Yes: state the nature and extent of AI assistance in submitted work. | University-wide academic integrity policy. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| UCC | Rules set per assessment by the programme director and module coordinators. Unacknowledged, unauthorised AI products breach academic integrity. | Yes: as each assessment sets out. | Continuous assessment, including projects and minor dissertations. Research theses fall under the Code of Research Conduct. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| University of Galway | Submitting AI-produced work as your own is misconduct. An instructor may permit limited use for parts of an assignment. | Do not present AI output as your own. A lecturer may ask for a statement on your use. | University-wide academic integrity policy and FAQs. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| Maynooth University | No GenAI unless teaching staff or department guidelines clearly allow it. | Yes: a declaration with every assignment; a GenAI statement in a PhD thesis where relevant. | Student guidelines; postgraduate research regulations. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| University of Limerick | The module leader decides. Use not permitted by the module leader breaches academic integrity. | Recommended: an acknowledgements section on how you used GenAI. | Academic Integrity Unit guidance on assessment. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| DCU | Research degrees: responsible, transparent use; the thesis content must be produced by the student. Taught modules: staff design GenAI in or out. | Yes for research theses: in the submission forms and in the thesis. | Doctoral and research master's guidance; Teaching Enhancement Unit page. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| TU Dublin | Only in ways approved in advance by your lecturer. | Yes: transparent and cited as the library guidelines set out. | University principles for learners. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| MTU | May support but not replace your own intellectual work; listed uses need prior agreement with your supervisor. | Yes: a declaration in the thesis front matter. | Postgraduate research theses. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| ATU | Unauthorised use is not permitted; each assessment brief sets the permitted level. | Yes: all use with attribution and citation. | University-wide assessment policy. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| SETU | Lecturers indicate where GenAI may be used; misuse is academic misconduct. | Yes: documented use acknowledged under the regulations. | All students, including research candidates. | 17 Oct 2026 |
| TUS | Using AI to complete an assignment is misconduct unless the assessment permits it. | Yes: any use acknowledged correctly. | Academic integrity information page (FAQ). | 17 Oct 2026 |
Source: College Statement on Artificial Intelligence and Generative AI in Teaching, Learning, Assessment & Research, version 2, 4 June 2026. Checked 17 October 2026.
Research: "Gen AI tools should only be used in a postgraduate research context following consultation with the thesis supervisor(s) and with their approval."
Acknowledging: "In any AI and GenAI uses for their academic work, students must acknowledge and reference their uses following the guidelines below." Schools and programmes set the detail in their handbooks.
More on this institution: Trinity and AI in your dissertation.
Source: Academic Integrity Policy, approved 30 May 2024, version 1.0, as published on ucd.ie (College of Arts and Humanities). Checked 17 October 2026. The policy points to the UCD Governance Document Library for the latest version.
Use: "Accordingly, submission of AI-generated content without explicit permission and attribution is not allowed." Permission comes from the module coordinator or instructor.
Declaring: "Students must indicate clearly in submitted work the nature and extent of any outside assistance (including the use of professional tutors, machine learning or AI technologies) according to the citation practices set out by the relevant subject/discipline."
More on this institution: UCD and AI in your dissertation.
Source: Academic Integrity for Continuous Assessments Policy, version 3.0, approved May 2026, for students registered from 2026-2027. Checked 17 October 2026.
Scope: "Under this Policy, continuous assessment includes practicals, projects, laboratory reports, essays, seminars, in-class tests, minor dissertations, and/or any other elements specified by the School, which are approved by ADSC." Research theses are covered by the UCC Code of Research Conduct instead.
Rule: "Academic integrity is breached if students submit the products of AI or use AI products to gain unfair academic advantage without acknowledgement and without authorisation."
More on this institution: UCC and AI in your dissertation or project.
Sources: QA220 Academic Integrity Policy and the Academic Integrity FAQs. Checked 17 October 2026.
Listed as misconduct in QA220: "Submitting all or part of an assessment item which has been produced using artificial intelligence (e.g. Google Translate or other machine translation services/software, generative AI, etc.) and claiming it as your own work."
From the FAQs: "In some circumstances, your instructor may permit a limited use of generative AI tools for certain aspects of preparing for your assignment, as long as you do not present generated outputs as your own work."
More on this institution: University of Galway and AI in your dissertation.
Sources: Student Guidelines for GenAI, version 1.2, April 2025, and the Regulations for Postgraduate Research Degrees, May 2025. Checked 17 October 2026.
Default: "IF IT IS NOT CLEARLY INDICATED BY TEACHING STAFF AND/OR DEPARTMENT GUIDELINES […] NO GENAI IS PERMITTED." Where use is allowed: "The student declaration of use will be attached to every assignment submission sheet."
PhD thesis: "A statement on the use of Gen AI tools should be included where relevant, following the Guidance on the use of Gen AI in PhD Theses."
More on this institution: Maynooth and AI in your dissertation.
Sources: Assessment and Gen AI and Tips for Students on the use of Gen AI, Academic Integrity Unit. Checked 17 October 2026.
Rule: "If AI is used in a manner which has not been permitted by the module leader, then this is a breach of academic integrity."
Acknowledging, as a recommendation: "It is recommended that students include acknowledgements section in your assignment outlining clearly how you used Gen AI, describing the instructions or prompts you gave the AI platform, the results generated and how they contributed to your work."
More on this institution: UL and AI in your dissertation.
Sources: Guidance for Candidates and Supervisors on Responsible Use of Generative AI in Doctoral/Master's Research, V1, March 2025, and the Teaching Enhancement Unit page Artificial Intelligence in Teaching, Learning and Assessment. Checked 17 October 2026.
Research thesis: "The thesis content must ultimately be produced by the student (not the tool) and full transparency on the use of Gen AI tools is required." And: "The declarations will be required in specific postgraduate forms upon submission of the thesis for examination and in the thesis itself."
Taught modules: staff decide whether to design GenAI in or out of an assessment. "When designing in, students should be clearly advised as to how they should declare the use of any GenAI, and staff are strongly advised to demonstrate responsible uses in class."
More on this institution: DCU and AI in your dissertation.
Source: Communicating with Students about GenAI, principles for learners from TU Dublin's guidelines on the responsible use of generative AI. Checked 17 October 2026.
Rule: "To support academic integrity, GenAI can only be used by students in ways that are approved in advance by their lecturer."
Citing: "The approved use of artificial intelligence systems and/or generative models are transparent and they are appropriately cited as set out in library guidelines."
More on this institution: TU Dublin and AI in your dissertation.
Source: Guidance on the Use of Generative AI Tools in Theses, Graduate Research School (version 3 according to the file name). Checked 17 October 2026. It covers postgraduate research theses.
Principle: "GenAI tools may support, but must not replace, the student’s intellectual and analytical work." Listed uses such as language editing need prior agreement with your supervisor.
Declaring: "Where GenAI tools are used for permitted purposes, students must include a clear declaration of use in the thesis (e.g. in the front matter, alongside the candidate’s declaration of originality/authorship)."
More on this institution: MTU and AI in your thesis.
Source: Assessment and Feedback Policy (AQAE056), issued April 2025, effective 1 September 2025. Checked 17 October 2026.
Rule: "Unauthorised use of Gen AI is not permitted and is addressed in AQAE022 Academic Integrity Policy." Staff state the permitted level of GenAI use in each assessment brief.
Acknowledging: "All usage must be acknowledged with proper attribution and citation."
More on this institution: ATU and AI in your dissertation.
Source: Student Academic Integrity Policy, version 1.0, approved 17 February 2026. Checked 17 October 2026. It applies to undergraduate, taught postgraduate and research students.
Principle: "SETU upholds the principle of academic integrity, whereby acknowledgement is given to the contributions of others, which includes substantive contribution of technology, including generative artificial intelligence in any work, through appropriate internal citations and references."
Acknowledging: "Where permitted, documented use of GenAI, and any other tools for writing or producing any work which is submitted for assessment, should be appropriately acknowledged as required under SETU regulations for undergraduate and taught postgraduate programmes, as well as regulations set out for research candidates."
More on this institution: SETU and AI in your dissertation.
Source: Academic Integrity, information page of the TUS Centre for Pedagogical Innovation and Development, which refers to the TUS Academic Integrity and Plagiarism policy. Checked 17 October 2026.
Listed as academic misconduct: "Using AI to complete part or all of an assignment unless specifically permitted as part of the assessment."
Acknowledging: "Any use of AI must be acknowledged correctly."
More on this institution: TUS and AI in your final year project.
Most of these texts leave the detail to your programme, module or supervisor. For your own dissertation, thesis or final year project, also read:
This page summarises published institutional guidance and links to the original sources. It is not legal advice and not a ruling on your assignment: what your programme, module or supervisor sets always comes first.
Compiled by Esmond, an independent service that evaluates academic writing with AI. Esmond is not affiliated with or endorsed by any institution named here. Seen an error or a newer source? Email [email protected].
No. It summarises what the institutions publish, with verbatim quotes and links. The text on the institution's own site always comes first, as do the rules of your programme, module and supervisor.
Every source was checked on 17 October 2026. An institution may have changed its text since then.
Official sources on each institution's own website, checked 17 October 2026. Quotes are verbatim.