Generative AI for Academics

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A practical course for integrating AI tools into your academic workflow

The AI conversation you’re not having

Everyone’s talking about generative AI in higher education. Most of those conversations focus on what students might do with ChatGPT, or whether AI will make essays obsolete, or how universities should “respond” to this technological shift.

But there’s a conversation that’s less visible, which is around how academics can use generative AI to reclaim time for the work that matters.

You’re already stretched thin. Teaching preparation, marking, email, administration, grant applications, and somehow finding time for research. The sector’s response to AI has been largely reactive—creating policies, updating assessment strategies, and managing the panic.

What if generative AI could actually help you create head space in your workflow rather than adding another thing to worry about?

What you’ll learn

This course provides a practical framework for integrating generative AI into your academic practice as a cognitive collaborator rather than just another tool.

By the end, you’ll be able to:

Write structured prompts that enhance the quality of AI outputs for your specific academic needs
Engage more deeply with text using AI as a reading companion to manage literature volume while maintaining critical thinking
Write more effectively using AI as a writing coach that helps you overcome blocks and improve clarity
Create academic content more efficiently across teaching, presentations, and various scholarly materials
Learn continuously using AI as a personal tutor for professional development despite time constraints

Why this course exists

The sector-wide response to generative AI has been characteristically reactive. Universities rushed to create policies, often before understanding what they were regulating. Academics found themselves caught between institutional anxiety and practical questions about whether these tools could actually help their work.

This course takes a different approach. Rather than starting with fear or hype, it starts with your actual workflow. Where do you spend time that creates little value? Which tasks drain your cognitive resources without contributing to your scholarly goals? How might AI tools create efficiencies that free up head space for meaningful work?

Generative AI is most useful not as a replacement for academic thinking, but as a tool for reducing the friction that prevents you from doing your best thinking.

Course structure

Lesson 1: Prompting AI

The quality of what you get from generative AI depends almost entirely on how you ask for it. This lesson teaches structured prompt design:

The anatomy of effective prompts that produce useful outputs
How to communicate your needs clearly to AI systems
Strategies for iterative refinement rather than one-shot attempts
Building a personal prompt library for recurring academic tasks

Practical outcome: You’ll craft prompts that significantly improve the relevance and usefulness of AI-generated content, laying the foundation for productive interactions across all areas of your work.

Lesson 2: Reading with AI

Academic reading is overwhelming—too many articles, too little time, and the pressure to stay current across expanding fields. This lesson explores using AI as a reading companion:

Transforming passive reading into active dialogue
Using AI to summarise, question, and analyse complex texts
Engaging more deeply with literature while managing volume
Maintaining critical thinking when AI supports comprehension

Practical outcome: You’ll develop strategies to engage more deeply with academic texts while managing the often overwhelming volume of literature, turning reading from a solitary struggle into a collaborative process.

Lesson 3: Writing with AI

Writing is one of academia’s most challenging and time-consuming activities. This lesson positions AI as a writing coach:

Overcoming writer’s block and getting unstuck
Using AI feedback on structure, clarity, and argument
Collaborative drafting without losing your voice
Iterating on ideas before committing to full drafts

Practical outcome: You’ll learn collaborative approaches that enhance your writing process without replacing your unique voice and ideas, helping you write more effectively while maintaining scholarly integrity.

Lesson 4: Creating with AI

Beyond core research and writing, academics create numerous materials—lesson plans, presentations, summaries, course materials. This lesson shows how AI streamlines content creation:

Developing teaching materials more efficiently
Creating presentation summaries and slide content
Generating examples, case studies, and activities
Adapting content for different audiences and formats

Practical outcome: You’ll discover how AI can assist in developing various academic materials, allowing you to focus more on high-value tasks that require your unique expertise.

Lesson 5: Learning with AI

Professional development never stops in academia, but time for learning new concepts is scarce. This lesson explores AI as a personal tutor:

Breaking down complex concepts in your field or adjacent areas
Exploring interdisciplinary connections
Creating personalised study plans for new topics
Maintaining continuous learning in a busy academic life

Practical outcome: You’ll gain tools to continue learning efficiently despite your busy schedule, leveraging AI to support your ongoing professional development and intellectual curiosity.

What you’ll receive

Five comprehensive lessons. Text-based lessons covering prompting, reading, writing, creating, and learning with AI. Work through at your own pace, revisiting materials as needed.

Practical implementation activities. Structured exercises in each lesson to help you integrate AI tools into your actual workflow rather than treating this as abstract learning.

Hands-on examples and real-world applications. Concrete demonstrations of how to use AI across various academic contexts, from literature review to lesson planning.

Strategies for calm, sustainable productivity. Approaches designed to help you manage your existing workload more effectively, not add more to your plate.

Lifetime access to course materials. As AI tools evolve, you’ll have ongoing access to the foundational principles that apply regardless of which specific platforms you use.

This course is ideal for you if:

You’re overwhelmed by your current workflow. You’re looking for practical ways to manage the volume of reading, writing, and content creation without working longer hours.

You want to understand AI as a collaborator. You’re interested in treating AI as a cognitive partner rather than just a tool that automates tasks.

You value your scholarly voice. You want to maintain the integrity and quality of your work while using AI to enhance your process.

You’re open to new approaches. You’re prepared to experiment with different ways of working and refine them based on what fits your context.

You’re time-poor but intellectually curious. You want to continue learning and developing professionally despite your busy schedule.

“The course was well-organized, with clear, step-by-step instructions that made it easy to follow. I found the content highly practical, and I was able to apply what I learned immediately in my work. While I would have liked more focus on imaging and video content, the course was transparent about covering that in a separate course. For the price, this course is an incredible value, and I highly recommend it to anyone in higher education looking to integrate AI into their workflow.”

Jeroen Alessie

Frequently asked questions

Do I need experience with AI tools to take this course? No. The course assumes no prior experience with generative AI. If you can use email and word processing software, you have the technical skills you need.

Which AI tools does the course cover? The course focuses on principles and approaches that work across different AI platforms. Examples use widely accessible tools like ChatGPT and Claude, but the strategies apply to any generative AI system.

How much time should I expect to spend? Most people complete the course over 3-5 weeks, spending about 2-3 hours per week on lessons and activities. The course is self-paced, so you can adjust this to fit your schedule.

Will this add more work to my already busy schedule? The goal is the opposite—to help you manage your existing workload more effectively. The focus is on calm, sustainable productivity, not adding tasks to your day.

How do I maintain my scholarly voice when using AI? The course emphasises AI as a cognitive collaborator that enhances your process, not a replacement for your thinking. You’ll learn strategies to maintain the integrity and quality of your work while benefiting from AI assistance.

Can I apply these approaches to my teaching? Yes. While the course focuses on your personal workflow, many strategies (particularly in the “Creating with AI” lesson) apply directly to developing teaching materials and supporting student learning.

Investment and enrolment

Current price: £10
One-time payment for lifetime access, including all future updates.

What you’re investing in:

5 comprehensive course lessons
Practical implementation activities for each lesson
Hands-on examples and real-world applications
Strategies for calm, sustainable productivity
Lifetime access to course materials

30-day satisfaction guarantee:
If you complete the course materials and implementation activities but don’t find practical value for your academic work, request a full refund within 30 days of enrolment.

About the instructor

Michael Rowe helps busy academics create sustainable, calm productivity workflows. His work focuses on reducing cognitive overwhelm and friction while building head space for meaningful academic work.

Michael serves mid-tier academics, senior lecturers, and professors across disciplines who need practical solutions for the systems-level challenges of academic work. His approach emphasises working with existing institutional structures rather than waiting for systemic reform, helping academics create change within their sphere of influence.

More about Michael →

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