By Nyx Osborne Sandford, News Subeditor
Turnitin, the software company used by the University of Bristol for the submission of academic assessments, is considering using students’ submitted work to improve AI tools.
The proposed change has since been postponed for the duration of the 2026/27 academic year to ‘give [Turnitin] time to discuss any changes with customers’, a spokesperson for the company said.
However, the University of Bristol said Turnitin has ‘no plans’ to use students’ work for this purpose. The University also assured the company does not share student submissions with other companies to train AI models.
Turnitin is widely used by British universities and functions to detect and flag plagiarism.
The company announced plans in early July to update its End User License Agreement (EULA) to allow the use of students’ submitted work for ‘improving or developing AI tools and other products, features, or services.’
The proposed change would jeopardise students’ ownership of their works, since Turnitin would require students to consent to the use of their work in order to access the software.
Failure to consent to the license agreement under Turnitin’s proposed change would prevent students submitting work for assessment - risking failing.
This would break with the University of Bristol’s current position that students maintain ownership of all work submitted to Turnitin.
It also contradicts the University’s assurance that the content of work submitted to Turnitin will not be used for commercial gain.
Lenny Osler
Despite the change’s postponement, several universities have taken action already.
The University of Southampton announced that it will not renew its contract with Turnitin after the 2026/27 academic year, and the University of Sussex announced discussions with Turnitin surrounding the proposal.
Other universities, like the University of York, are experiencing pressure from their Students’ Union to end contracts with Turnitin over the proposed change.
The proposal has been condemned by academics as a step towards the ‘assetisation’ of academic work for the educational technology industry’s profit.
Turnitin has yet to announce if the proposed changes will be implemented in the next academic year.
A University of Bristol spokesperson said:
‘Turnitin has confirmed that it has never used student papers to train a generative AI model and has no plans to do so, nor does it pass on student submissions to any other companies to train AI models. Turnitin also confirmed that they will not be making any changes to its End User Licence Agreement (EULA) during the 2026/27 academic year.
‘We will continue to monitor the situation closely, working with sector bodies and partners to understand and inform any future developments and their potential implications for our students and staff. The University assesses the data processing impacts of any software we procure, including where licence agreements or terms of service change, and we take action where necessary.’
A Bristol SU spokesperson said:
‘As your Officer Team, we are aware of the concerns regarding the impact of the proposed change to Turnitin's policy on students and want to assure you that it is on our radar.
‘We are committed to working closely with the university to represent students voice and feedback via our democratic forums. We will continue to work closely with the university on education matters, including assessments and feedback.
‘You can reach out to our elected Full-Time Officers or your academic reps if you'd like to provide feedback.’
Featured Image: Epigram / Sophie Maclaren
Would you be happy for Turnitin to use your work in this way?
