20 practical, difficulty-rated ways Politics students at Hobart and William Smith Colleges can use AI — each naming the exact tutorial it links to and what you’ll take away. Click any card to watch it.
Before you use these on graded work: check your professor’s policy on AI.
It differs by course, and these examples are study aids — not permission.
All Politics AI use cases
Easy
Summarize a policy brief
Condense a healthcare reform document into key points. The linked tutorial covers MacMost's copy-paste method — pull an article into reader view, paste it into ChatGPT after 'summarize this:', then ask for a set word count or a 10-bullet version; also how to grab a YouTube transcript to summarise a video.
What you'll take awayHow to compress a long reading or video into a summary of the exact length you need, and why pasting the source keeps it accurate.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Summarize a policy brief — Condense a healthcare reform document into key points.
Give me (1) a three-sentence summary, (2) five bullet-point key claims, and (3) anything the author asserts without supporting evidence. Text below:
[PASTE THE TEXT HERE]
Explain federalism, gerrymandering, and sovereignty clearly. The linked tutorial covers ChatGPT's Study Mode (type /study), an interactive tutor that guides you with questions step by step instead of just handing over the answer.
What you'll take awayHow to switch ChatGPT into tutor mode so it drills you on terms and ideas rather than doing the thinking for you.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Define political terms — Explain federalism, gerrymandering, and sovereignty clearly.
Define each term in one clear sentence, then give a concrete example of each in context. Once I've read them, quiz me on them one at a time and tell me what I got wrong and why.
Clarify social contract theory with historical context. The linked tutorial covers a 10-step ChatGPT prompt system — standard definition, an explain-it-to-a-10-year-old version, real-life analogies, a simple diagram, then a comparison table — that you aim at any concept you're stuck on.
What you'll take awayA repeatable prompt sequence that turns a confusing idea into a definition, an analogy and a diagram you can check against your course notes.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Explain a political theory — Clarify social contract theory with historical context.
Start with a one-sentence definition, then explain it as if I'm 10, then give a real-world analogy. Finish by flagging anything scholars genuinely disagree about — and tell me what you're unsure of.
Generate research angles on voter turnout decline. The linked tutorial covers three brainstorming methods in ChatGPT — a reusable custom-instructions 'brainstorm paradigm', an AI-diagram tree that fans one topic into dozens of branches, and a SWOT prompt to pressure-test an idea.
What you'll take awayThree prompt patterns you can reuse to go from a blank page to a categorised list of options, plus a way to stress-test the one you pick.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Brainstorm essay topics on voter turnout decline — Generate research angles on voter turnout decline.
Give me 10 options grouped into 3 themes, then mark the 3 most original and explain what makes them stronger.
Write a message to a representative advocating a position. The linked tutorial covers drafting an email in ChatGPT and improving it through conversation — the first draft is deliberately generic, then detail is added turn by turn — plus what not to paste in for privacy.
What you'll take awayWhy the first draft always reads like AI, how to iterate it into your own voice, and to keep real names out of the prompt.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Draft a constituent email — Write a message to a representative advocating a position.
Keep it under 150 words: polite, specific, with one clear ask. Give me two versions — one formal, one warmer. Don't include real names, ID numbers, or anything private.
Summarize the holding and reasoning of a landmark ruling. The linked tutorial covers a 10-step ChatGPT prompt system — standard definition, an explain-it-to-a-10-year-old version, real-life analogies, a simple diagram, then a comparison table — that you aim at any concept you're stuck on.
What you'll take awayA repeatable prompt sequence that turns a confusing idea into a definition, an analogy and a diagram you can check against your course notes.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Explain a Supreme Court case — Summarize the holding and reasoning of a landmark ruling.
Start with a one-sentence definition, then explain it as if I'm 10, then give a real-world analogy. Finish by flagging anything scholars genuinely disagree about — and tell me what you're unsure of.
List rebuttals to an argument about term limits. The linked tutorial covers three brainstorming methods in ChatGPT — a reusable custom-instructions 'brainstorm paradigm', an AI-diagram tree that fans one topic into dozens of branches, and a SWOT prompt to pressure-test an idea.
What you'll take awayThree prompt patterns you can reuse to go from a blank page to a categorised list of options, plus a way to stress-test the one you pick.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Suggest counterarguments — List rebuttals to an argument about term limits.
Give me 10 options grouped into 3 themes, then mark the 3 most original and explain what makes them stronger.
Structure talking points on immigration policy. The linked tutorial covers using ChatGPT across the research-paper workflow — finding a topic where a genuine gap exists, then structuring the paper around it.
What you'll take awayHow to pick a defensible topic and lay out the sections before you start writing.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Outline a debate position — Structure talking points on immigration policy.
Give a topic-sentence outline only — not full prose. For each section, state the argument it makes and the evidence it would need.
Contrast liberalism and conservatism on the role of government. The linked tutorial covers a compare-and-contrast prompt in ChatGPT (demonstrated on Buddhism vs Hinduism) that asks for similarities and differences, then expands any point you want more depth on.
What you'll take awayA prompt for structured comparisons, and how to push ChatGPT to elaborate on the specific dimension you care about.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Compare two ideologies — Contrast liberalism and conservatism on the role of government.
Give me a table of the key similarities and differences, then one short paragraph on which difference matters most and why.
Write an announcement for a mock campaign event. The linked tutorial covers AI Academy's approach to long-form writing: never ask for the whole essay at once — break it into smaller prompts across two tabs and a document so you keep control of the argument.
What you'll take awayA workflow that automates the writing but not the thinking, so the argument stays yours and the draft stays checkable.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Draft a press release — Write an announcement for a mock campaign event.
Help me write this, don't write it for me. First ask me 3 questions about my argument, then propose a thesis and a section plan. Do not draft full paragraphs until I approve the plan.
Explore survey crosstabs and summarize demographic voting patterns. The linked tutorial covers dragging a dataset straight into ChatGPT and prompting it to describe the data, produce descriptive statistics per column, and chart the columns you care about.
What you'll take awayHow to interrogate a spreadsheet conversationally, and why the 'analyzing' step means it ran real code rather than guessing.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Analyze polling data — Explore survey crosstabs and summarize demographic voting patterns.
I'm uploading my dataset. First describe what's in it and flag any data-quality problems, then answer my question, and show the code you ran so I can check it myself.
Group by mechanism and note where the evidence is contested. The linked tutorial covers the fundamentals of ChatGPT — prompting basics, what it can and can't do, and how to personalise it.
What you'll take awayEnough grounding to attempt an unfamiliar task with AI and judge whether the answer is trustworthy.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Synthesize scholarship on democratic backsliding — Group by mechanism and note where the evidence is contested.
Walk me through how to do this step by step. Ask me any clarifying questions first, and show your reasoning so I can check it.
Contrast parliamentary and presidential governance structures analytically. The linked tutorial covers a compare-and-contrast prompt in ChatGPT (demonstrated on Buddhism vs Hinduism) that asks for similarities and differences, then expands any point you want more depth on.
What you'll take awayA prompt for structured comparisons, and how to push ChatGPT to elaborate on the specific dimension you care about.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Compare political systems — Contrast parliamentary and presidential governance structures analytically.
Give me a table of the key similarities and differences, then one short paragraph on which difference matters most and why.
Structure a cost-benefit evaluation of a proposed regulation. The linked tutorial covers the fundamentals of ChatGPT — prompting basics, what it can and can't do, and how to personalise it.
What you'll take awayEnough grounding to attempt an unfamiliar task with AI and judge whether the answer is trustworthy.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Build a policy analysis memo — Structure a cost-benefit evaluation of a proposed regulation.
Walk me through how to do this step by step. Ask me any clarifying questions first, and show your reasoning so I can check it.
Design a message and outreach plan for a local race. The linked tutorial covers ChatGPT Projects as a workspace — turning a rough idea into a full plan with timelines, task assignments and a risk assessment that stays organised across sessions.
What you'll take awayHow to go from a vague goal to a structured plan with milestones and risks, kept in one persistent workspace.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Plan a campaign strategy — Design a message and outreach plan for a local race.
Break this into phases with milestones, working backwards from [DUE DATE]. Include the top 3 risks and how I'd mitigate each.
Categorize bill provisions into thematic policy areas systematically. The linked tutorial covers pasting a broken snippet into ChatGPT with the prompt 'scan the following code for potential problems' — it finds the bug (a divide-by-zero), explains why it happens and returns a fixed version.
What you'll take awayA debugging prompt formula, plus the habit of re-running the fixed code to confirm the error is actually gone.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Code legislative text — Categorize bill provisions into thematic policy areas systematically.
Tell me what's wrong, explain why it happens, then give the corrected version. Walk through the fixed code line by line with a concrete input.
[PASTE YOUR CODE AND THE ERROR HERE]
Use R to model factors predicting election outcomes. The linked tutorial covers dragging a dataset straight into ChatGPT and prompting it to describe the data, produce descriptive statistics per column, and chart the columns you care about.
What you'll take awayHow to interrogate a spreadsheet conversationally, and why the 'analyzing' step means it ran real code rather than guessing.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Run a regression analysis — Use R to model factors predicting election outcomes.
I'm uploading my dataset. First describe what's in it and flag any data-quality problems, then answer my question, and show the code you ran so I can check it myself.
Design a survey experiment on framing and policy support
Design a study measuring how framing shifts policy support. The linked tutorial covers designing a study end-to-end in ChatGPT — research questions, hypotheses, survey items, sample size and sampling method, R code for the analysis, then implications and titles.
What you'll take awayA full research-design workflow, including how to answer a reviewer who says your sample is too small.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Design a survey experiment on framing and policy support — Design a study measuring how framing shifts policy support.
Propose a research question, hypotheses, method, sample and sampling strategy, and the analysis plan. Then critique the weaknesses of your own design.
Create a GPT summarizing and comparing legislative proposals. The linked tutorial covers building a Custom GPT from scratch in ChatGPT and feeding it your own past writing so its output sounds like you rather than generic AI.
What you'll take awayHow to set up a reusable assistant with your instructions baked in, so you stop re-explaining context every session.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Build a custom policy-research GPT — Create a GPT summarizing and comparing legislative proposals.
Draft the name, description, instructions and 4 conversation starters for this Custom GPT. The instructions should tell it to ask clarifying questions and to admit when it doesn't know.
Script analysis of legislator voting patterns and party unity. The linked tutorial covers pasting a broken snippet into ChatGPT with the prompt 'scan the following code for potential problems' — it finds the bug (a divide-by-zero), explains why it happens and returns a fixed version.
What you'll take awayA debugging prompt formula, plus the habit of re-running the fixed code to confirm the error is actually gone.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm a Politics student at HWS. My task: Analyze roll-call voting with code — Script analysis of legislator voting patterns and party unity.
Tell me what's wrong, explain why it happens, then give the corrected version. Walk through the fixed code line by line with a concrete input.
[PASTE YOUR CODE AND THE ERROR HERE]