How AI is transforming assessment in WIL and PD courses

By: Matthew King (he/him)

The Centre for WIL collaboration with , an AI career assistant, unlocks critical reflection and increases student confidence.

The Centre for Work-Integrated Learning’s (WIL) adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in the WIL courses portfolio has taken another step forward in its three-phase plan.

The unit's AI Strategy initiative started in late 2023 by conducting an environmental scan of AI across campus and developing an AI policy for all PD/WIL courses for the winter 2024 offering. In phase two, the Centre for WIL introduced the responsible use of AI educational module in PD 10: Professional Responsibility in Computing and PD 13: Research in the Workplace.

This module, available to students in all faculties, aims to foster an understanding of ethical AI practices and the implications of AI in various fields. Now in phase three, the unit is implementing AI-enabled activities and assessments, further enhancing students' engagement and preparing them for future challenges in the evolving landscape of AI.

"We launched the responsible use of AI module in fall, and the feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive," says Evana Delay, lead, work-integrated learning course management.

“We’re thinking about the ways in which we can have students interact with, engage with, and leverage AI in their courses to make them future-ready.”

Evana Delay, lead, work-integrated learning course management

Following the module implementation, the unit focused on integrating AI into activities and assessments. The aim of this phase is to explore how AI tools can enhance WIL courses and evaluation methods.

“We are allowing students in PD10 to use AI to help brainstorm some ideas as part of their assignment. We're then asking them whether they leveraged AI to help craft a response,” Delay says. “For spring 2025, we're planning to launch a new assignment in PD13, which will be paired with the module. Students will experiment with AI tools and critically evaluate the results. They’ll consider how to use AI in their assignments and document their use of GenAI appropriately.”

AI activities for students

One of the unique AI tools leveraged in phase three of this initiative was InStage’s mock interview platform. It uses AI-driven simulations to help students prepare for real-world job interviews. The Centre for WIL implemented the tool in graduate course WIL 601: Career Foundations for Work-Integrated Learning in concert with content focusing on interview preparation and answering interview questions.

By using the mock interview tool, students can input a job title and responsibilities. The AI then analyzes this information and generates interview questions specifically tailored to the role. InStage generates a range of mock interview questions, including introductory questions and behavioural questions. It also offers closing questions and the option for users to practice with customized scenarios based on their chosen job role or industry.

Dr. Felicia Pantazi, educational developer, Centre for WIL

One key feature of the InStage tool is the ability to practice multiple times. Each time students practice, they can change the questions, job type and the avatars in the interview before submitting the assignment.

“One of the benefits is that students receive immediate, automatically generated feedback on their mock interviews, allowing them to practice in a low-stress, authentic environment,” says Delay. “They then have the opportunity to reflect on and apply those skills to the assessment, where they are graded and receive feedback.”

Nicole Mclean, vice president of strategic partnerships at InStage

As part of WIL 601, students must submit a recorded mock interview. They had the opportunity to practice with the InStage software before submitting. On average, students participated in seven practice sessions using the AI tool before tackling the assignment. After implementing InStage in WIL 601, the submission rate of the assignment increased significantly, from 46 to 80 per cent.

"It’s huge to have students engage in practice, communicate and build confidence in these environments. They can make mistakes, and they can delete it and submit what they're comfortable with,” says Nicole Mclean, vice president of strategic partnerships at InStage.

InStage and the Centre for WIL have a shared goal to enhance WIL, which helped build the partnership.

"��ݮ��Ƶ has very clear educational goals, and InStage has a specific product that can help reach those goals,” says Imran Mouna, director of strategic partnerships at InStage.

“��ݮ��Ƶ is extremely well-known for work-integrated learning, so when we presented a way to strengthen that type of offering, it made it very easy to work together."

Students in WIL 601 will once again engage with the mock interview tool this spring.

Building on that success, the team is now exploring how to scale its use for the undergraduate career fundamentals course, PD 1—which typically sees more than 2,000 students enrolled each fall.