Are theses and dissertations checked for AI?

Updated October 31, 2026 · 4 min read

Short answer

The universities we checked mostly handle AI in theses through rules rather than software: approval before you use generative AI, a declaration in the thesis, or both. Toronto, Georgia, Alabama, UCL, Dublin City University, Oxford's Department of Materials and Sharjah all have rules like these.

Whether software also checks your thesis for AI depends on what your school has licensed. Turnitin sells AI detection for iThenticate, its checker for research and theses, as a paid add-on. UNLV runs every thesis through iThenticate without it, Maastricht's version includes it, and Dublin City University forbids examiners from using AI detectors at all.

What do universities require?

University	What its thesis rules say	On AI detectors	Date
University of Toronto (graduate school)	Prior approval from the supervisor(s) and committee for any generative AI use; say which tools were used, how and why; be able to defend that use at the final oral exam	Not stated	Updated Sep 2026
University of Georgia (Graduate School)	Generative AI is "unauthorized assistance" unless the advisory committee approves it; approved use is disclosed in a statement in the thesis	Not stated	Jan 2024
University of Alabama (Graduate School)	A thorough disclosure from every student who used generative AI, with a sample statement	Warns that "future detection tools" may expose AI text that wasn't documented	Dec 2025
UCL (Doctoral School)	List AI help on the thesis declaration form, including copyediting; examiners must confirm in the viva that the thesis is the candidate's own work	Not stated	Read Oct 2026
Dublin City University	Declare every generative AI tool and its purpose in the thesis, or declare that you used none	Examiners must not use AI detectors or upload the thesis to AI tools	2025–26 rules
University of Oxford, Department of Materials	A statement immediately after the abstract, with the name, version and publisher of each tool	Not stated	From May 2026
University of Sharjah	Disclosure of AI use is mandatory for thesis proposals and final theses	Detectors are only supportive; no disciplinary decision may rest on them alone	2026
UNLV (Graduate College)	Every thesis and dissertation goes through iThenticate for a similarity check	Its iThenticate "does not include the AI writing detection tool"	Read Oct 2026
Maastricht University (Library)	iThenticate is offered to check PhD theses	Includes an AI writing indicator, "a starting point for review, not a verdict"	Read Oct 2026

Department rules can be stricter than university-wide ones, as Oxford Materials shows. Read both.

Will my thesis be run through an AI detector?

It depends on the license. Thesis checks often use iThenticate, Turnitin's checker for research and theses; UNLV and Maastricht both do. Turnitin says "iThenticate customers can access AI writing detection as a paid add-on," in English only. That's why UNLV's check leaves it out and Maastricht's includes it.
Some schools rule it out. Dublin City University says "Examiners must not upload any part of the thesis to a Gen AI tool or use a tool for the detection of use of Gen AI." Sharjah allows detectors only as supporting evidence and says "No disciplinary decision shall be based solely on the output of automated detection tools."
Some set score limits. Yicai reported in June 2026 that many Chinese universities set AI-detection "warning lines between 20 percent and 40 percent for undergraduate theses," with stricter limits for postgraduate work. Students described false positives, and one said repeated re-checks cost CNY780 (about USD 110) before the score fell below the limit.
Detectors flag many theses. In a 2026 study, Pangram flagged 529 of 1,163 recent master's theses (45.5%) as containing AI-generated text. The authors warn this "cannot be interpreted as confirmed prevalence rates of AI use," since nobody knew how those theses were written.

The simplest way to know is to ask your graduate school which checks it runs, similarity only or AI as well, and who sees the results.

How do you write an AI declaration for a thesis?

Name each tool with its version and maker. Oxford Materials asks for "the name, version and publisher of the generative AI tool."
Say what you used it for. Dublin City University requires "any Generative AI tools used, and the purpose for which they were used." UCL says AI used for copyediting, not just proofreading, must be declared.
Declare non-use too, if your school asks. DCU says a student who used none "should explicitly declare that there has been no such use."
Put it where your school says: right after the abstract (Oxford Materials), on the declaration form (UCL) or in a statement inside the thesis (Georgia).

Alabama's sample wording is a good starting point: "During the preparation of this exam/project/thesis/dissertation, the author has utilized [Generative AI Tool Name and version/date], a language model created by [Generative AI Tool Provider]." UCL's example lists each use: "Copilot was used for proofreading, ChatGPT was used for support with software code and Notebook LM was used in the initial stages of the literature review."

What if your thesis is flagged?

Show your process. Drafts, version history, notes, data and records of supervisor meetings show how the thesis came together. What to do after a false flag.
Be ready to explain your work. Toronto expects that "Students must be able to describe and defend any use of generative AI, as well as the contents of the thesis during their final oral examination." That's also your strongest defense.
Point to the rules. Many policies say a detector result alone isn't enough. Maastricht calls the indicator "a starting point for review, not a verdict."

Checklist before you submit

Read the rules of your graduate school and your department.
Get approval in writing before you rely on any AI tool, where your school requires it (Toronto, Georgia).
Keep a log of each tool, version and purpose as you go. It makes the declaration easy.
Write the declaration in the place and format your school asks for.
Check your text. Run a similarity check for missed citations, and an AI check if you want to see which passages a detector might flag. AI detectors vs plagiarism checkers.
Keep your drafts and version history until your degree is awarded.

Questions people also ask

Do universities check dissertations for AI?

Some do. Turnitin sells AI detection for iThenticate, its checker for research and theses, as a paid add-on, so it depends on what your school licensed and switched on. UNLV's version leaves AI detection out, while Maastricht's includes an AI writing indicator. Dublin City University forbids examiners from using AI detectors on theses.

Can I use ChatGPT for my thesis?

Only within your university's rules. Several require prior approval: at Toronto from your supervisor(s) and committee, at Georgia from your advisory committee. Every university rule we read that covers AI use requires you to declare it in the thesis.

Do I have to declare AI I only used for grammar or proofreading?

Check your own rules. UCL says any AI used to draft text, including copyediting rather than just proofreading, must be declared, and its example declaration lists proofreading too. Dublin City University asks you to declare every generative AI tool and what you used it for. When in doubt, declare it.

What AI score is acceptable for a thesis?

Most of the universities we checked don't set one, and several say a detector result can't decide a case on its own. Yicai reported in 2026 that many Chinese universities set AI-score limits of 20 to 40% for undergraduate theses, with stricter limits for postgraduate work.

Sources

By the AI Checker Plus team. We research and draft these guides with help from AI tools, then check every claim against the sources listed above.