From brainstorming to plagiarism anxiety — a global survey of 23,218 university students across 109 countries reveals a generation navigating AI with curiosity, hope, and real unease.

Chart 1 — Adoption is high but uneven across the globe

Nearly three in four students surveyed (71.5%) have used ChatGPT at least once. But adoption rates vary widely by region — Latin American students lead at 78%, while Middle Eastern and African students trail at 66%. North America’s low count reflects very few survey respondents, not lower adoption.

Source: Ravšelj et al. (2024). Global ChatGPT Student Survey. Mendeley Data. Q4 (country of study), Q13 (ever used ChatGPT). North America excluded from trend comparisons due to small sample (n = 54).

Chart 2 — What students actually use it for depends on what they study

Brainstorming is the top use case across all disciplines — but beyond that, usage patterns diverge. Applied Sciences students are the heaviest users of coding assistance and study help, while Arts & Humanities students lean on it for proofreading and creative tasks. Hover over any cell to explore the detail.

Source: Ravšelj et al. (2024). Q10 (field of study), Q18a–l (ChatGPT task frequency). ChatGPT users only (n = 16,010). Scale: 1 = Never, 5 = Always.

Chart 3 — More curious than anxious: the emotional split of AI-assisted study

How do students feel while using ChatGPT? This diverging bar chart places positive emotions to the right and negative emotions to the left of a shared centre line — making the imbalance immediately visible. Curiosity extends furthest right; shame barely registers on the left. Hover over any bar for the exact mean score.

Source: Ravšelj et al. (2024). Q32a–o (emotions while using ChatGPT). ChatGPT users only (n = 16,010). Bars show deviation from the scale midpoint of 3.0 (“Sometimes”). Scale: 1 = Never, 5 = Always.

Chart 4 — Students see real benefits, but fear real risks

This is the central tension of AI in education. Students strongly believe ChatGPT improves their access to knowledge and overall learning — yet they simultaneously fear it will encourage plagiarism, spread misinformation, and hinder deep learning. Both scales run 1–5. Use the dropdown to filter by field of study and see how perceptions shift across disciplines.

Source: Ravšelj et al. (2024). Q26a–j (learning outcomes, users only, n = 16,010); Q22a–j (ethical concerns, all respondents, n = 22,414). Scale: 1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree.

Chart 5 — Opportunity or threat? How students see AI reshaping work

Students don’t see AI’s labour market impact as simply good or bad — they see both simultaneously. This grouped bar chart clusters beliefs by what kind of change they describe: opportunities, adaptation required, fundamental change, and risks. Click any category in the legend to isolate it. The pattern is clear: students are far more optimistic than fearful.

Source: Ravšelj et al. (2024). Q30a–l (labour market beliefs, all respondents). Bars grouped by predicted effect category. Scale: 1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree. Dotted line marks neutral (3.0).

Data: Ravšelj, D., et al. (2024). Higher Education Students’ Early Perceptions of ChatGPT — Global Survey Data [Data set]. Mendeley Data. https://doi.org/10.17632/gwhdkj5y5k.2
Survey conducted: October 2023 – February 2024 | n = 23,218 students | 109 countries and territories
Visualisations built with R using ggplot2, plotly, dplyr, tidyr, readxl.