ChatGPT in higher education: Opportunities, challenges, and required competencies in the absence of guiding policies

This study examines the opportunities and challenges of employing ChatGPT in higher education, identifies essential user competencies, and evaluates its impact in the absence of formal policy guidelines. A qualitative case study design involved interviews with 10 faculty members and 10 students at a federal university in the United Arab Emirates. Documentation of live ChatGPT usage was also analyzed to triangulate findings. Thematic analysis revealed the following eight core themes: (1) Cost-effectiveness and time savings. (2) ChatGPT as a source of information and a flexible tool. (3) ChatGPT’s ability to adapt to the user. (4) Prompt engineering competencies in ChatGPT. (5) Addiction to ChatGPT. (6) The misinformation risks with ChatGPT. (7) Academic integrity concerns. (8) A lack of consensus on how to utilize ChatGPT appropriately. The findings underscore an urgent need for formal policies to guide the ethical and responsible use of ChatGPT in higher education. The study also emphasizes the necessity of targeted training workshops for teachers, curriculum integration, and adapting pedagogical approaches. It also calls for proactive attention to ethical concerns including misinformation, algorithmic bias, and overreliance to ensure that the educational benefits of ChatGPT are realized responsibly and sustainably.