Using Artificial Chatbots as Academic Counselors; When Chatgpt Becomes an Academic Counselor (A Case Study of Chatgpt)

Authors

    Ali Saeidi Department of Psychology and Counseling, Farhangian University, PO Box 889-14665, Tehran, Iran
    Alireza Ghorbani * Department of Psychology and Counseling, Farhangian University, Mashhad, Iran alireza1382.ghorbani@gmail.com

Keywords:

academic counsultation, case study, artificial intelligence, ChatGPT

Abstract

Objective: This research aimed to investigate the use of artificial intelligence chatbots, particularly ChatGPT, as academic counselors.

Methods and Materials: A qualitative case study design was employed, involving 10 unstructured interview sessions with ChatGPT across three iterative rounds of analysis. Comparative coding with a deductive approach was used to analyze ChatGPT’s responses to academic counseling scenarios.

Findings: The findings revealed thirteen subthemes organized under two main themes: strengths and weaknesses. Strengths included providing multifaceted perspectives, suggesting resources, and generating effective study strategies, while weaknesses included a lack of empathy, personal opinion, and foresight.

Conclusion: Although ChatGPT cannot replace professional counselors, results suggest it may function as a semi-professional academic counselor capable of delivering effective guidance in logical, non-emotional contexts. Validity was ensured by comparing ChatGPT’s responses with other AI chatbots, namely Perplexity, Gemini, and Copilot, and ensuring consistency across coding iterations.

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Published

2026-04-01

Submitted

2025-08-04

Revised

2025-11-10

Accepted

2025-11-26

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Saeidi, A., & Ghorbani, A. (2026). Using Artificial Chatbots as Academic Counselors; When Chatgpt Becomes an Academic Counselor (A Case Study of Chatgpt). Journal of Assessment and Research in Applied Counseling (JARAC), 1-8. https://www.journals.kmanpub.com/index.php/jarac/article/view/2987