AI Writing Prompts for Students: Tools(Chat GPT, Claude), Tips, and Examples

Jan 29, 2025

This is your comprehensive guide to over 50 tried-and-tested AI prompts for academic writing, organized both by subject and type. It identifies the most valuable tools currently available, including Chat GPT and Claude, which are free, Grammarly, which has a free tier, and introduces you to task-specific tools like Paper guide. It also includes examples, ethical considerations, and ways you can enhance the outcome.

My Experience with AI Writing Tools as a Student

During the last months, I have been trying different AI tools that could help me with my academics. Here, what I found, in hundreds of hours of testing, especially on academic writing.

The Tools I Use Daily

Chat GPT

Best for: Brainstorming, outlining, and providing fast feedback on writing.
Price: Free and Paid
My experience includes having done more than 150 academic assignments using Chat GPT, and the capabilities I have found really good are ideation and creating rough drafts. It has been great at simplifying complex topics into simple terms and has provided me with many insights for arguments at an academic level.
Key features I use daily:
- Outline creation
- Quick fact-checking
- Explaining difficult concepts
- Grammar checking
- Brainstorming sessions

Claude

Best for: In-depth research assistance and complex writing tasks
Price: Free and Paid
My experience: Compared to ChatGPT, Claude is more insightful and can handle context better. I have used it mainly for:Research paper analysis
- Complex technical writing
- Detailed feedback on arguments
- Understanding academic papers

Paper guide

Best for: Analyzing research papers and assisting academic writers
Price: Free and Paid
My experience: This AI research assistant tool has completely changed the way I analyze research papers. Here are some key benefits:
- Find Research Papers
- Understanding academic papers
- Citation generation and management
- Academic Writer
- Literature reviews

Other tools that I use occasionally include Grammarly for in-depth grammar checking and Humanize AI for humanizing AI text.

Proven Writing Prompts by Task

1. Grammar & Style Check

Basic Grammar Check:

“Review this paragraph for grammar, clarity, and academic tone. Provide specific corrections and explanations for each change:

[Your text]”

Advanced Style Analysis:

“Analyze this text for:

1. Sentence structure variety

2. Academic vocabulary appropriateness

3. Transition effectiveness

4. Passive/active voice balance

5. Formal tone consistency

Chat GPT Prompt

Input – Basic Grammar Check

Output – Basic Grammar Check

Claude Prompt

Input – Advanced Style Analysis

Output – Advanced Style Analysis

2. Research Paper Writing

Initial Research

Literature Review:

“Help me conduct a literature review on [topic]. Please:

1. Identify key themes in current research

2. Highlight methodological approaches

3. Note controversies or debates

4. Suggest research gaps

5. Recommend recent papers to read”

Research Question Development:

“Help me develop research questions for [topic]. Consider:

1. Current gaps in literature

2. Methodological feasibility

3. Potential impact

4. Scope appropriateness

Current draft question: [your question]”

Methodology Section

Quantitative Research:

“Help me design a methodology for studying [Topic] using quantitative methods. Include:

1. Sampling strategy

2. Data collection methods

3. Analysis techniques

4. Validity considerations

5. Limitation acknowledgments”

Qualitative Research:

“Design a qualitative research approach for [Topic]. Address:

1. Interview/observation protocols

2. Participant selection

3. Data coding strategy

4. Trustworthiness measures

5. Ethical considerations”

Chat GPT Prompt

Input – Quantitative Research

Output – Quantitative Research

Claude Prompt

Input – Qualitative Research

Output – Qualitative Research

3. Subject-Specific Prompts

Literature Essays

Literary Analysis:

“Help me analyze [text/passage] by:

1. Identifying literary devices

2. Exploring themes

3. Analyzing character development

4. Connecting to historical context

5. Suggesting critical perspectives”

Comparative Analysis:

“Compare and contrast [text 1] and [text 2] focusing on:

1. Thematic parallels

2. Stylistic differences

3. Historical contexts

4. Author’s intentions

5. Critical reception”

Science Writing

Lab Report:

“Review my lab report, focusing on:

1. Hypothesis clarity

2. Methods replicability

3. Results presentation

4. Discussion depth

5. Scientific writing style

Current draft: [your text]”

Scientific Literature Review:

“Analyze recent research on [scientific topic]:

1. Summarize key findings

2. Identify methodological trends

3. Note conflicting results

4. Suggest future directions

5. Highlight practical applications”

4. Thesis Development

Thesis Statement:

“Strengthen this thesis statement for [topic]:

1. Clarify main argument

2. Add specificity

3. Ensure testability

4. Consider scope

5. Address significance

Current thesis: [your statement]”

Chapter Organization:

“Help me organize my thesis chapters on [topic]:

1. Suggest logical flow

2. Identify key sections

3. Plan transitions

4. Balance content

5. Note required evidence”

5. Citation and Reference Management

Citation Check:

“Review these citations for [style format]:

1. Check formatting accuracy

2. Verify source types

3. Suggest missing information

4. Order reference list

5. Cross-check in-text citations

Citations:

Chat GPT Prompt

Input – Citation Check

Output – Citation Check

Claude Prompt

Input – Citation Check

Output – Citation Check

6. Presentation and Speech Writing

Academic Presentation:

“Help me create a presentation outline for [topic]:

1. Structure key points

2. Suggest visual aids

3. Add engaging elements

4. Include transitions

5. Design conclusion

Target audience: [specify audience]”

7. Simple Grammar Checking

Quick Grammar Fix:

“Check this sentence for basic grammar and spelling:

[text here]”

Basic Readability:

“Make this paragraph easier to read while fixing any grammar issues:

[text here]”

Punctuation Check:

“Check and fix punctuation in this text:

[text here]”

Chat GPT Prompt

Input – Simple Grammar Checking

Output – Simple Grammar Checking

Claude Prompt

Input – Simple Grammar Checking

Output – Simple Grammar Checking

8. Essay Editing Prompts

Structure Check:

“Analyze my essay structure:

1. Check paragraph flow

2. Verify topic sentences

3. Look for strong transitions

4. Ensure logical progression

Current essay:”

Argument Strength:

“Evaluate my essay’s arguments:

1. Identify weak points

2. Suggest stronger evidence

3. Check logical flow

4. Spot unsupported claims”

Chat GPT Prompt

Input – Structure Check

Output – Structure Check

Claude Prompt

Input – Structure Check

Output – Structure Check

9. Critical Analysis

Text Analysis:

“Help me analyze [text/article] critically:

1. Main arguments identification

2. Evidence evaluation

3. Methodology assessment

4. Bias detection

5. Strengths/weaknesses analysis”

Research Critique:

“Evaluate this research paper:

1. Methodology appropriateness

2. Data analysis validity

3. Conclusion justification

4. Literature integration

5. Limitations discussion”

10. Research Proposal Writing

Proposal Structure:

“Help me outline a research proposal for [topic]:

1. Research question development

2. Literature gap identification

3. Methodology planning

4. Timeline creation

5. Budget estimation”

Significance Section:

“Write a significance section addressing:

1. Academic contribution

2. Practical implications

3. Innovation aspects

4. Potential impact

5. Future applications”

Best Practices I’ve Discovered

1. Be Specific with Context

Bad vs. Good Prompts:

Bad: “Help me write an essay”

Good: “Help me write a 2000-word argumentative essay about climate change impacts on agriculture, focusing on:

1. Recent studies from 2020-2024

2.Specific geographic region: Mediterranean

3. Economic implications for small-scale farmers

4.Adaptation strategies”

2. Use the “Chain of Thought” Method

Step 1: “Help me create an outline for [topic]”

Step 2: “Now, develop the introduction using this outline”

Step 3: “Expand on point 1 from the outline, focusing on [specific aspect]”

3. Provide Examples for Better Results

Weak Approach:

“Help me improve my writing style”

Strong Approach:

“Here’s a paragraph from my writing:

[your text]

Please improve it by:

1. Using my existing vocabulary style

2. Maintaining my unique voice

3. Suggesting better transitions

4. Show before/after comparisons”

4. Implement Version Control

“Here’s my previous draft:

[previous text]

Here’s my current version:

[current text]

Please:

1. Compare the changes

2. Suggest further improvements

3. Maintain consistency with earlier sections”

5. Master Prompt Iteration

Example Evolution:

Initial: “Help me write about climate change”

Iteration 1: “Help me write about climate change impacts on agriculture”

Final: “Help me write about climate change impacts on Mediterranean agriculture, specifically:

1. Temperature changes (2020-2024 data)

2. Rainfall pattern shifts

3. Economic impact on olive farming

4. Adaptation strategies used by local farmers”

6. Handle Complex Topics

Break Down Method:

1. “Explain [complex topic] in simple terms”

2. “Now, add technical details to the simple explanation”

3. “Finally, connect it to broader academic concepts”

Ethical Guidelines & Academic Integrity

Understanding AI’s Role in Academic Writing

Proper Usage Framework

✅ Using AI to understand complex concepts
✅ Generate ideas for research
✅ Editing and rephrasing content
✅ Finding relevant academic sources
❌ Directly copying and pasting AI-generated text
❌ Reliance on AI to prepare complete papers with no personal research.

Conclusion

Key Takeaways From My Experience

After a year of using this AI writing tool as a student, I found out that the secret of success is to use this tool intelligently and ethically, be it to brainstorm topics, acting as an AI research assistant, grammar checker, or humanizing the AI text.

The key is not to rely on artificial intelligence to do the work for you, but to use it in such a manner that helps you learn to develop better writing and researching capabilities.