The Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools to Prepare Medical School Applications

Abstract

Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have been changing the landscape in daily life and the practice of medicine. As these tools have evolved to become consumer-friendly, AI has become more accessible to many individuals, including applicants to medical school. With the rise of AI models capable of generating complex passages of text, questions have arisen regarding the appropriateness of using such tools to assist in the preparation of medical school applications. In this commentary, the authors offer a brief history of AI tools in medicine and describe large language models, a form of AI capable of generating natural language text passages. They question whether AI assistance should be considered inappropriate in preparing applications and compare it with the assistance some applicants receive from family, physician friends, or consultants. They call for clearer guidelines on what forms of assistance—human and technological—are permitted in the preparation of medical school applications. They recommend that medical schools steer away from blanket bans on AI tools in medical education and instead consider mechanisms for knowledge sharing about AI between students and faculty members, incorporation of AI tools into assignments, and the development of curricula to teach the use of AI tools as a competency.