To find out what AI literacy support your university offers, start with the current course information and ask your course team to fill the gaps. The Office for Students published Making AI work for students: reflections on institutional practice on 11 November 2026. Its findings give students a reason to check what training they can actually access. The questions below are our practical suggestions, inspired by that report. They are not official requirements or a description of what every university provides.
What the report tells us
The OfS and Advance HE conducted the research between June and September 2026, focusing primarily on English higher education institutions. The report draws on conversations with more than 300 students and staff. Its published HTML summary describes uneven student AI literacy training: ambitious provision in some institutions, but reports of little or no training from many students. It also highlights different starting points and unequal access to tools. These findings cannot establish what a particular course offers today.
The summary says staff training is often optional and poorly attended, and stresses the value of discipline-specific staff development. It records students' views that AI skills matter for employment; that is not evidence of guaranteed job outcomes. The research did not examine AI's implications for academic research or make wider predictions about higher education's future. This article uses the official webpage summary, including its expanded sections; the linked PDF has not been reviewed here.
Find the current offer
Begin with a question that can receive a concrete answer: where can I find the current AI literacy training for my course? A general statement that a university supports responsible AI use leaves several things uncertain. You still need to know what activity or resource is available, who it is for, and how to take part. Ask for the relevant page or contact rather than trying to infer an offer from a broad policy statement.
Then check how the training fits into your studies. Is it part of scheduled teaching, an optional activity, or material for independent use? If there are joining instructions, read them and ask about anything unclear. Ask whether the information applies to your course and current stage of study. These are questions to verify, not assumptions that a particular service exists. A resource offered elsewhere in the university may have a different audience or purpose.
Keep access to training separate from permission to use AI. A workshop can explain a tool without authorising its use in an assignment. If that boundary is unclear, ask the person responsible for the assessment. Equally, a rule restricting AI in assessed work does not by itself explain what training is available. You are trying to understand two separate pieces of information: the learning support on offer and the rules governing a particular task.
Ask how it connects to your subject
The report's discussion of discipline-specific staff training suggests a useful question for students: does the support include examples relevant to what I study? This is our extension of the finding, not a claim that the report prescribes a particular student course. Ask which sessions or resources address your subject and who can discuss questions that a general introduction leaves unanswered. Avoid assuming that a university-wide resource covers every discipline equally.
Make the enquiry specific enough to be useful. You could describe a type of activity from your course and ask whether the training discusses it. Explain what you want to understand, rather than asking only whether a tool is good or bad. You do not need to upload an assignment, private information or another person's work to make this enquiry. A brief description of the learning task is usually a clearer starting point than a large collection of material.
If the answer is that only general training is available, record that accurately. It does not establish that the course is poor, nor does it mean the resource has no value. Ask whether there is someone who can answer subject questions, and distinguish a confirmed contact from a possible referral. Do not treat a suggestion to ask another department as proof that the department offers the support you need.
Raise access needs and starting points
The report's attention to unequal access is a reason to ask practical questions early. If a training activity involves a tool you cannot use, explain the barrier and ask what options are available. For example, you might need information about equipment, accessible materials or whether participation requires a paid account. These are examples of issues to raise, not claims about the report's participants or promises that an institution will provide a particular alternative.
Ask who is best placed to respond. Your course team may answer directly or identify another service. If you are referred elsewhere, check what that service can actually help with. Keep the enquiry focused on what you need to participate, and use an appropriate institutional channel for any sensitive information. There is no need to share private records with a public AI tool to explain an access question to your university.
Starting without prior AI experience is also a useful fact to communicate. Ask what knowledge the training assumes and whether there is an introductory route or a person who can explain unfamiliar terms. If you already have experience, ask how to judge which parts are relevant to you. The aim is to find an appropriate starting point, rather than treating every student's experience as interchangeable. Neither a confident classmate nor a polished demonstration tells you what support is available to you.
Record the answers and choose a next step
Write a short record of what you learn: the training name, the relevant page, its intended audience, any subject connection, and the person to contact about unresolved questions. Separate confirmed information from suggestions and unknowns. Include when you received the answer so that you can recognise information that may need checking later. A clear record helps you follow up without turning an uncertain conversation into an assumption about an institutional promise.
For your next action, ask your course team four questions: where is the current training, which parts concern my subject, who can help with access barriers, and what support exists for someone at my starting point? Read the answers, confirm any unclear referrals, and choose one available next step. If a gap remains, describe it accurately through the course's feedback route. The outcome is a clearer understanding of support you can use, with unanswered questions kept visible.
中文摘要
英国学生事务办公室于2026年11月11日发布报告，介绍其与Advance HE在6月至9月开展的研究，范围主要涉及英格兰高校，依据为300多名师生的交流。官方网页摘要指出学生AI素养培训不均衡，并关注不同起点和工具获取差异。本文据此提出编辑建议：向课程团队确认培训入口、学科关联、获取障碍的支持渠道和适合自身起点的学习支持，区分培训与作业使用许可，并记录已确认信息及待答问题。本文未审阅报告PDF，不承诺特定服务、权利、成绩或就业结果。