Could ChatGPT get an Engineering Degree? Evaluating Higher Education Vulnerability to AI Assistants

Significance Universities primarily evaluate student learning through various course assessments. Our study demonstrates that AI assistants, such as ChatGPT, can answer at least 65.8% of examination questions correctly across 50 diverse courses in the technical and natural sciences. Our analysis demonstrates that these capabilities render many degree programs (and their teaching objectives) vulnerable to potential misuse of these systems. These findings call for attention to assessment design to mitigate the possibility that AI assistants could divert students from acquiring the knowledge and critical thinking skills that university programs are meant to instill.