From lecture halls to research labs, universities across the US are bringing Google’s AI tools to campus. Schools use Gemini for Education and Google NotebookLM to prepare students and faculty for the future, focusing on data security, campus-wide education, and cutting-edge academic research. This is how you do it.
Prioritizing data security and privacy
Protecting student and institutional data presents an ongoing obstacle for universities striving to maintain strict security and privacy standards in an AI-driven landscape. Gemini for Education offers enterprise-class data protection for campus-wide deployments at no cost, meaning your data is your data and it’s not reviewed or used to train AI models or for ad targeting. Several institutions are already leveraging these secure tools to innovate securely:
- Virginia Tech provides access to AI tools — such as Gemini for Education and Notebook LM — that its IT Security Office approved for use with high-risk data to ensure institutional information remains protected.
- UC Riverside introduced a secure campus AI assistant called The Grove, built on Gemini Enterprise.
- UC Irvine approved Google Workspace, Google Cloud Platform and Gemini for Education for secure use with select sensitive institutional data and then put these tools to work through ZotGPT, a free AI platform with Gemini among its models, available to the entire campus community.
Building skills and training frameworks
While universities are eager to equip their communities with essential AI skills, providing widespread access across diverse campus populations poses a significant logistical hurdle around how people teach and learn with AI. To address this challenge, institutions develop and implement training they have developed using industry-recognized materials such as the Google AI Educator Series and the Google AI for Education Accelerator:
- Case Western Reserve University recently implemented Gemini campus-wide and is training staff on how to use the new AI tools at conferences and through self-paced online learning.
- Indiana University is now offering its flagship generative AI course, “GenAI 101,” developed at the Kelley School of Business, to the public for free, using tools and examples built around various AI tools, including the Gemini app.
- At the University of Virginia, students use the Google AI Professional Certificate as a starting point for applied work with local businesses and community organizations. Through dedicated 100-hour projects, students help companies think through how AI can streamline operations, build internal capacity and identify practical use cases.
- The University System of Maryland partnered with Google to offer AI Essentials courses that help students earn industry-recognized credentials.
Strengthens research and new ideas
To scale complex technical workflows, higher education institutions are using customized AI solutions that assist faculty and accelerate research.
- At the University of Alberta, a custom Gemini gem helps faculty get 24/7 support for writing research grants.
- At the “Build with Google AI” Hackathon at New York University, teams used Google AI tools to build their own functional apps such as TreeRoute, a walk planner that recommends healthy trails based on current pollen levels, weather and urban environment data.
Looking ahead
Our work in higher education is focused on helping universities adopt AI safely and effectively. That means providing data protection-enhanced tools like Gemini and NotebookLM—at no cost—to help protect institutional data while offering education to educators that helps prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow.