Turnitin has confirmed it will pause proposed changes to its End User Licence Agreement (EULA) until late 2027, following concerns about how student work may be used in relation to artificial intelligence.
With AI becoming increasingly common in higher education, questions have been raised about how students' assignments, research and other academic work are stored, used and protected by third-party platforms.
The Curtin Student Guild has sought clarification from the University about Turnitin's use of student submissions, particularly whether students' work could be used to train generative AI models.
What has Curtin confirmed?
Curtin's Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academic has advised the Guild that the University uses Turnitin for standard text-matching purposes to support academic integrity.
Importantly, Curtin has confirmed that student work submitted through Turnitin is not being used to train generative AI or large language models (LLMs).
Turnitin has also advised the University that it has never used, and will not use, Curtin student submissions to train generative AI models.
Curtin has further confirmed that its legal team will continue monitoring Turnitin's terms and conditions, including when agreements come up for renewal in the new year.
What does this mean for students?
For now, students can continue using Turnitin as part of their normal assessment processes, with the University's assurance that their submissions are not being used to train generative AI.
While the proposed EULA changes have been paused until late 2027, the Guild will continue monitoring developments and sharing relevant updates with students.
The Guild believes students should retain control over their intellectual property and that their academic and creative work should not be used to train AI without their informed consent.
As universities adopt new technologies, we'll continue working to ensure students' rights, privacy and intellectual property are respected and protected.