Published on: 13/06/2024 · Last updated on: 05/08/2025
What is Copilot?
As at the “last updated” date shown at the top of this article, Copilot is the only Generative AI tool available to all University staff when logged into a device with a Bath login.
This article refers to Microsoft Copilot as accessed using a web browser at copilot.microsoft.com or copilot.cloud.microsoft
It does not refer to the app versions of Copilot, or Copilot as integrated with MS Office (I.e. Inside Word and Excel).
Copilot is described by Microsoft as ‘Your everyday AI companion’. With Copilot, you can:
- Use text prompts to help with ideation / initial research
- Generate images
- Analyse, summarise and rewrite the contents of an uploaded file
- ‘Describe’ the contents of an uploaded image
How do I access Copilot?
Ensure you are logged into your University account then go to https://copilot.microsoft.com or copilot.cloud.microsoft in your browser. Most browsers support it.
Introduction to Copilot: Video overview
Click to view this introductory overview of the features of Copilot, including how to use text prompts, create images and upload files and images. The processes demonstrated are correct as at March 2025:
Slides from Copilot sessions delivered by the TEL Team
Download the slides from our ‘Introduction to Copilot’ sessions below. This version is a static resource and may not reflect recent changes to Copilot.
Example text prompts to use with Copilot
Example text prompts:
- ‘Create a lesson outline to introduce the most popular models of memory to university students studying psychology’
- ‘Suggest five points to include in a personal reference for a student who…’
- ‘Create three multiple choice questions for a short quiz about…’
Ask Copilot to refine existing responses:
- ‘Provide references to relevant peer-reviewed journals’
- ‘Simplify your response to make the questions suitable for a first-year undergraduate at a UK University’
- ‘The lesson outline must focus more on [x]. Remove the information about [y].’
- ‘Offer four possible responses for each quiz question’.
Requests for image generation:
- ‘Create an image representing the concept of human memory in relation to how the brain works’
- ‘A square icon of a light bulb representing the concept of ideation’
- ‘Draw a SWOT analysis grid’
- ‘Paparazzi-style long lens photos of citizens of Pompeii in 79BC reacting to the eruption of a volcano. Ordinary people. Market traders. Families. Historical. Photojournalism.’
- ‘Visualize the human brain’s prefrontal cortex during decision-making, in vibrant colours.’
- ‘Depict the stages of child development with symbolic imagery, from infancy to adolescence.’
- ‘Illustrate a calm, therapeutic environment where cognitive-behavioural therapy is in progress.’
- ‘A fractal pattern representing the Fibonacci sequence, illustrated as a growing tree.’
- ‘An abstract representation of a multi-dimensional Calabi-Yau manifold.’
Example files to upload and question/analyse
Example prompts to try with the ‘Tech Break’ PDF file below:
- ‘Summarise the information about technology’s effects on wellbeing using five bullet points’
- ‘Create three discussion points for my students based on the text’
- ‘Create five multiple choice questions for my students to answer’
Example prompts to use with the rubric below:
- ‘Create a feedback message to a student who scores 53 overall but is weak at ‘supporting their points or arguments’. Provide extra detail about they can improve supporting their points or arguments.’
- ‘Suggest five feedback points for a student with a final score of 48 to help them increase their score into the 50 to 59 category’
Copilot sessions
The CLT regularly run short sessions introducing Copilot. Please search the EVENTS page of the Hub for ‘Copilot’ for upcoming dates.
Additional information
For the latest updates to Copilot see the Copilot Blog