AI Is Reading Your College Essays — And It Might Even Reject You: How Admissions Are Quietly Changing

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As colleges race to handle unprecedented volumes of applications, a major shift is unfolding behind the scenes: artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to read, screen, and evaluate student essays and application materials. For years, students have been warned not to rely on AI chatbots to write their personal statements. Yet ironically, some colleges are now depending on AI themselves to review those very essays.

While institutions emphasize that humans still make the final admissions decisions, AI is now embedded deeply in the admissions pipeline — from reading essays to analyzing transcripts and even determining whether a student’s research submission is authentic. This change is raising questions about transparency, fairness, and the future of college admissions.

Colleges Quietly Bring AI Into Admissions

According to admissions directors, AI tools are increasingly being adopted because they solve a simple but overwhelming problem: the towering number of applications. With standardized tests becoming optional at many institutions, more students are applying, and application files are becoming more complicated.

Some universities are publicly embracing these technologies, while others are introducing them more quietly to avoid backlash.

Juan Espinoza, vice provost for enrollment management at Virginia Tech, highlights the advantage clearly:
“Humans get tired; AI does not. The AI is consistent, it doesn’t have a bad day.”

This fall, Virginia Tech rolled out an AI-powered essay reader, expected to cut down the review time significantly and allow the university to release decisions nearly a month earlier than before.

Previously, each student’s short-answer essays were reviewed by two human readers. Now, one of those readers has been replaced by a custom-built AI model trained on thousands of past essays.

A human steps in only when the AI score and human score differ significantly — ensuring AI helps but does not dominate.

How Widespread Is AI in Admissions?

The full extent remains unclear. Most colleges are cautious about publicizing their use of AI because the topic is sensitive and can provoke negative reactions from students and parents.

NACAC — the National Association for College Admission Counseling — even updated its ethical guidelines this year, urging colleges to prioritize transparency, fairness, integrity, and respect for student dignity when using AI.

Still, adoption is accelerating.

Authenticity Checks: AI That Interviews Students

At Caltech, AI is being used for something particularly unusual:
It helps verify whether student-submitted research is actually their own.

Applicants upload their research to a system that uses an AI chatbot to interview them on video. The responses are then reviewed by Caltech faculty to judge whether the student genuinely understands and is passionate about the work.

Caltech’s admissions director, Ashley Pallie, describes the rationale:
“Can you claim this research intellectually? Is there joy and passion in your work?”

The technology aims to counteract the growing influence of admissions consultants and polished, professionally packaged applications.

Not Everyone Is Happy: Backlash Begins

Earlier this year, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faced intense criticism when students learned that AI was being used to evaluate grammar and writing quality in their essays.

Applicants worried that the system might inaccurately judge their writing or favor certain writing styles.

UNC responded by updating its admissions website, emphasizing that AI only provides data points while human evaluators make the actual decisions.

This backlash is one reason many colleges choose not to openly announce their use of AI — especially as they also ask students to certify that they did not use AI “unethically” while writing their applications.

Why Colleges Say AI Helps Students Too

Beyond essay reading, many institutions argue that AI reduces errors and speeds up administrative tasks that otherwise delay admissions decisions.

Faster Transcript Processing

• Georgia Tech is using AI to read transfer student transcripts, eliminating manual data entry.

• This helps tell students sooner how many credits will transfer — a major concern for applicants.

• The university plans to expand the tool to high school transcripts as well.

Georgia Tech is also testing AI to identify low-income students who qualify for federal Pell Grants but might not realize it, ensuring financial aid opportunities aren’t missed.

Highlighting Personal Context

At Stony Brook University, AI tools are being tested to summarize essays and letters of recommendation. Instead of replacing human readers, the system highlights important personal details that may matter:

• Illness during a school year

• The death of a parent

• Family responsibilities

• Challenges or hardships

Admissions officers say these summaries make it easier to understand a student’s story more fully.

The Future: Humans and AI Together — For Now

AI experts and admissions professionals agree on one point: AI is becoming a permanent part of the admissions process.

Emily Pacheco of NACAC’s special interest group for AI in admissions puts it directly:
“Humans and AI working together — that is the key right now.”

From essay reviews to transcript reading to catching details humans might miss, AI is becoming a supporting tool throughout the process.

But the future may look different.
“Ten years from now, all bets are off. I’m guessing AI will be admitting students.”

A New Era of College Admissions Has Arrived

The use of AI in admissions raises important questions:

• Will AI introduce bias — or reduce it?

• Will students trust decisions made partly by machines?

• Will colleges be transparent about how AI is used?

• Could AI eventually replace human admissions officers entirely?

For now, colleges maintain that human judgment remains central. But as application numbers soar and processes grow more complex, AI’s role is only expanding.