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GrokAn AI assistant compares programs using what it can find and cross-check
When a Grade 12 student asks an AI assistant to compare three programs, the answer is assembled from public pages: the program page, provincial application services, review sites and rankings. A fact that is vague, undated or contradicted elsewhere gets dropped, distorted or replaced by a third party's version.
We found no public study measuring how many Canadian applicants compare programs this way. The research we located covers enrolled students, not prospective applicants, so this article uses no usage statistic. It starts from something checkable, how these systems pick sources.
Google states in its AI features documentation that its AI features choose supporting pages while generating a response, and that no special optimization is required. The lever is the quality and verifiability of your program pages.
This builds on our articles on AI recommendation criteria and program page markup. For the wider picture, see our guide to recruiting more students.
What applicants actually ask when they compare
Education is a provincial responsibility, so there is no single national application system. In Ontario, applications to universities go through the Ontario Universities' Application Centre (OUAC); other provinces use their own services or apply directly. Questions therefore depend on where the program sits.
| Applicant's question | Fact to publish on the program page | Where it can be verified |
|---|---|---|
| Is this a recognised degree-granting institution? | Provincial authorization or charter, type of institution | Provincial ministry, Universities Canada member list |
| How do I apply, and by when? | Application service (OUAC or other), course code, deadline with year | Program page, application service |
| What grades do I need? | Admission average or prerequisites for the last intake with year, supplementary application | Admissions page |
| What does it cost? | Tuition and fees per term or year, difference for international students, date updated | Fees page |
| Is there co-op or an internship? | Structure, duration, whether placement is guaranteed | Program page |
| Is the program accredited by a professional body? | Body name and scope (for example engineering or nursing) | Professional regulator |
A page that answers these six lines in plain text, not buried in a PDF viewbook, is easier to quote accurately than most competitors' pages.
Make each program page a record that can be checked
A verifiable page states precise facts, names its source and shows when it was last reviewed.
- One program name everywhere. Program page, application service listing, brochure and awards pages should use the same name.
- Status in plain words. Say whether the institution is a public university, a college or a private career college, and what authorization applies. Do not imply a status you do not hold.
- Dated costs. State tuition and ancillary fees for each academic year, domestic and international, and what is billed separately.
- Sourced outcomes. Any employment or satisfaction figure should name the survey, year and population, with a link.
- A visible review date, changed only when the content really changes.
Point to official sources instead of replacing them
The strongest trust signal is a link to the official source. Universities Canada lists its member universities, and the relevant provincial ministry publishes recognition and program approval information. Link to them where you make a claim about status.
These links serve two audiences. The applicant checks in one click. The assistant gets a second source that confirms, or contradicts, your page. If it contradicts, you want to find out before it does.
Avoid loose wording such as "nationally recognized" when the status is more specific. Write exactly what the source says.
Align the website, listings and documents
An assistant also reads listings, forums and PDFs. Run a simple inventory for each program:
- the program page and any French version, particularly for bilingual institutions;
- the OUAC or other application service listing;
- the awards, scholarships and financial aid pages;
- the brochure PDF and campus tour pages;
- your Google business profile and social pages.
Give each sensitive field (name, length, tuition, admission average, deadline) a named owner. The usual cause of contradictions is a brochure left on last year's version.
Structured data helps machines read, it does not guarantee citation
Google documents Course structured data, and the vocabulary is defined at schema.org/Course. The markup must match what is visible on the page. No official source promises that markup leads to an AI citation. Treat it as good housekeeping.
Test what assistants say about you, on a schedule
Each term, put the same prompts to several assistants and note the discrepancies.
| Sample prompt | What you check | Action if confirmed |
|---|---|---|
| "Compare [program] at [university] and [rival]" | Name, length, co-op | Fix your page or the third-party source |
| "What is the tuition for [program]?" | Figure and year quoted | Date and detail the fees page |
| "What average do I need for [program]?" | Admission average and year | Publish the figure with its intake year |
| "Is [program] accredited?" | Status wording | Cite the professional body |
Keep the answers and the test date. Results vary from session to session, so a test is an alert, not a statistical measure. See also our piece on Gen Z AI school search.
When an assistant gets a fact wrong
Start by finding where the wrong fact came from. Ask the assistant for its sources, then open them. Often the error sits on a third-party listing, an old brochure or a cached page rather than on your current program page.
Fix the source you control first, then update your page so the correct fact is easy to find and dated. For listings you do not control, such as a directory or an application service entry, contact the publisher with the corrected detail. Record what you changed and retest at the next cycle.
What an on-site agent adds, and what stays with the institution
Skolbot Chat is an agent installed on the institution's website. It answers applicants from content the institution has published, qualifies the inquiry, offers an appointment or campus visit and passes the conversation to the team and the CRM. It supports advisors rather than replacing them.
An agent can only answer correctly if the pages are correct. Recurring questions without a clear answer on your site show which pages to fix. Nothing guarantees that it changes what an external assistant says about you. Checking the facts remains the institution's responsibility. For applicant information, the federal Office of the Privacy Commissioner explains PIPEDA, and Quebec institutions must also consider Quebec's private-sector privacy law.
