Abstract:

Academic writing is a core competency in higher education. However, in the Mexican context, challenges related to spelling, argumentation, and adherence to academic conventions often hinder student performance. Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) presents an opportunity to improve writing through task automation, spell-checking, idea generation, and text clarification. Nevertheless, it also poses risks such as technological dependence, a loss of originality, and the potential for factual inaccuracies. This study aimed to explore students' perceptions of using GenAI for academic writing by analyzing their motivations, the tasks they automate, the types of content they generate, and the perceived changes in their writing skills. A qualitative study was conducted using an interview guide administered to 26 students who use GenAI. Data were collected via recorded video conference sessions on Microsoft Teams for later analysis. The content of each recording was reviewed manually to identify patterns and categories, which then formed the basis for interpretation. The findings show that students use GenAI mainly for sections such as introductions, summaries, and conclusions, valuing its usefulness for improving spelling, expanding vocabulary, structuring ideas, and understanding complex topics. However, they recognize limitations related to superficiality, factual errors, an unnatural writing style, and the risk of dependency. They also express a tension between improving their skills and losing creativity, which leads them to verify and rewrite texts to maintain authenticity. Regarding technological dependence, students showed mixed attitudes; some consider GenAI a support tool that strengthens their skills, while others acknowledged a decline in their writing practice and creativity due to excessive delegation of tasks to the tool. It is evident that GenAI is perceived as a useful educational resource, but one that requires critical oversight and moderated use to prevent a loss of student autonomy. This research provides evidence for the role of GenAI as a complementary support tool rather than a substitute for academic authorship. It is necessary to incorporate ethical strategies that allow the advantages of artificial intelligence to be leveraged without compromising student autonomy, originality, and critical thinking in the university environment.

Keywords:

Generative Artificial Intelligence, Academic Writing, Student Perceptions, Writing Skills, Higher Education.