Apply Yourself College application season will swiftly be upon graduating high school seniors, and with the advent of generative AI looming over pretty much everything, there’s no doubt that some of those soon-to-be-adults will be using the help of AI chatbots like ChatGPT to complete what is undoubtedly one of the worst parts of applying to schools. As recent reporting in the New York Times and other outlets note, ChatGPT and its competitors are often just okay at writing short essays on their own — but if used as an editing tool, or to help outline or brainstorm, this tech may shift the college applications process in a significant way. To ban or not to ban is the question, though as NYT education writer Natasha Singer reports, very few colleges or universities have thus far put rules on the books about using generative AI on applicant essays. Those who have acknowledged the technology, which in its current iteration is still so new that it was barely breaking through last year’s application season, have taken stances as varied as the schools themselves. As the NYT notes, the University of Michigan Law School cautioned that applicants “ought not use ChatGPT or other artificial intelligence tools as part of their drafting process,” but noted, somewhat confusingly, that they can “ask pre-law advisors, mentors, friends, or others for basic proofreading assistance and general feedback and critiques.” The Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, meanwhile, said that applicants may “use this technology…Oh God… Kids Are About to Start Writing College Essays Using ChatGPT