Higher Education Students’ Evolving Perceptions of ChatGPT: Global Survey Data from the Academic Year 2024–2025

The introduction of ChatGPT in November 2022 marked a significant milestone in the application of artificial intelligence in higher education. Due to its advanced natural language processing capabilities, ChatGPT quickly became popular among students worldwide. However, the increasing acceptance of ChatGPT among students has attracted significant attention, sparking both excitement and scepticism globally. Building on the early students' perceptions of ChatGPT after the first year of introduction, a comprehensive and large-scale global survey was repeated between October 2024 and February 2025. The questionnaire was distributed in seven different languages: English, Italian, Spanish, Turkish, Japanese, Arabic, and Hebrew. It covered several aspects relevant to ChatGPT, including sociodemographic characteristics, usage, capabilities, regulation and ethical concerns, satisfaction and attitude, study issues and outcomes, skills development, labour market and skills mismatch, emotions, study and personal information, and general reflections. The survey targeted higher education students who are currently enrolled at any level in a higher education institution, are at least 18 years old, and have the legal capacity to provide free and voluntary consent to participate in an anonymous survey. Survey participants were recruited using a convenience sampling method, which involved promoting the survey in classrooms and through advertisements on university communication systems. The final dataset consists of 22,963 student responses from 120 different countries and territories. The data may prove useful for researchers studying students' perceptions of ChatGPT, including its implications across various aspects. Moreover, also higher education stakeholders may benefit from these data. While educators may benefit from the data in formulating curricula, including designing teaching methods and assessment tools, policymakers may consider the data when formulating strategies for higher education system development in the future.