Exploring ChatGPT’s Impact on Post-secondary Education: A Qualitative Study

As Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer (ChatGPT) gains traction, its impact on post-secondary education is increasingly being debated. This qualitative study explores the perception of students and faculty members at a research university in Canada regarding ChatGPT’s use in a post-secondary setting, focusing on how it could be incorporated and what ways instructors can respond to this technology. We present the summary of a discussion that took place in a two-hour focus group session with 40 participants from the computer science and engineering departments, and highlight issues surrounding plagiarism, assessment methods, and the appropriate use of ChatGPT. Findings suggest that students are likely to use ChatGPT, but there is a need for specific guidelines, more classroom assessments, and mandatory reporting of ChatGPT use. The study contributes to the emergent research on ChatGPT in higher education and emphasizes the importance of proactively addressing challenges and opportunities associated with ChatGPT adoption and use.