The Role of AI in Graduate Admissions: Results From the Fall 2025 ETS/NAGAP Survey

Abstract

As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to gain prevalence, its use is gaining acceptance in graduate enrollment management (GEM), as professionals begin to think beyond its use for chatbots or recruitment materials to imagine how it can increase efficiency. At the same time, AI’s effects on how GEM professionals perceive traditional application components are beginning to become clearer. GEM professionals have begun to question the value of the traditional personal statement essay and indicate that other elements of a holistic admissions process may consequently gain significance moving forward, including interviews, campus visits, and proctored writing samples under controlled conditions. Here we detail results from the Fall 2025 ETS/NAGAP survey of graduate enrollment management professionals, sharing their experiences of AI’s impact on graduate admissions processes, and conclude by looking forward to how processes and practices are likely to change based on emerging norms and consensus on best practices.

Suggested citation: Gooch, R. M., & Haviland, S. B. (in press). The role of AI in graduate admissions: Results from the Fall 2025 ETS/NAGAP survey (Research Notes). ETS.