Microsoft Copilot is an AI-powered digital assistant available to all Penn State faculty, staff, and students. As a user, you can enter prompts into Copilot, asking it to brainstorm ideas, generate content, summarize information, and more.
To help you learn more about Copilot and how it can work for you, ITLD has created an Introduction to Microsoft Copilot course, which is now available on the Learning Resource Network (LRN). In this course, you will learn how to access and use Copilot, how to create meaningful prompts, and how to use AI tools responsibly.
Read on to learn some of the ways you could use Copilot to increase the quality and efficiency of your work.
1: Summarize an article or resource.
If you have an article, essay, or book chapter you’d like to share with others, Copilot has the ability to summarize that piece of writing for you. Depending on the length, you can either paste it directly into Copilot’s chat box, or you can provide Copilot with a link to the resource. Copilot can even draft a list of key points or important takeaways for you, and you can request that it focus on or ignore particular topics and passages.
Try this prompt as a starting point: Can you condense this resource into a 1-paragraph summary, with 3 key takeaways?
2: Review your communication drafts for professionalism.
Suppose you’re writing a sensitive or important email to a colleague. You want to be clear and straightforward, but you don’t want to be blunt or aggressive. Copilot can review your writing and communications, and it can provide suggestions on how to improve quality and tone. You can ask it to check for certain words or phrases you want to avoid, and you could even request that it rewrite a portion of the message to meet your standards.
Try the following prompt as a place to begin: Please review the following email for tone and professionalism. Check for grammar and spelling, and make sure it doesn’t contain any inappropriate word choices.
3: Split a large project into manageable steps.
If you’ve been assigned a project, and you’re not sure where to begin, Copilot can assist with planning and preparation. Explain the project to Copilot—including the goals, timelines, and expectations—then tell it to create a to-do list. You may have to revise the output to fit your needs, but Copilot can help you get your project off the ground and point you in the right direction.
Try making your own version of the following prompt: I have to create a 15-minute PowerPoint presentation on budgeting for our next staff meeting, which is in 3 weeks. Can you create a to-do list for planning and building the presentation?
4: Suggest activities for your next class session or team meeting.
Copilot can be a great tool for brainstorming engaging activities. If you’re a faculty member, you could provide Copilot a summary of your next lesson plan, then ask it to come up with a list of potential discussion questions for the group. If you’re a manager, Copilot might be able to provide icebreakers or team-building activities to encourage friendly communication and collaboration within your unit. Remember: the more context you provide in your prompt, the more specific Copilot’s response will be.
Try this prompt: Create a list of team-building activities we can use at our next staff picnic. The activities need to accommodate up to 25 people, and it shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes. Assume the activity will take place outdoors.
5: Simulate a conversation.
Do you want to practice running a job interview? Would you like to have a hypothetical conversation with a historical figure? Copilot is a great way to simulate scenarios as a means of education and professional development. If you’re a supervisor who’s preparing to lead an interview, Copilot can provide a safe space to practice asking questions and evaluate the quality of your interview methods. If you’re a faculty member who wants to encourage your students to engage in a topic more personally, consider designing an activity where they need to hold a conversation with a notable figure in their discipline. Copilot will use its knowledge base to create as accurate a simulation as it’s able, and when you’re finished, you can ask it to analyze the experience and create a list of takeaways.
Try this prompt for starters: Let’s practice a job interview. Pretend to be a candidate interviewing for a job as an administrative assistant. I will be the interviewer, and I will ask you questions about the position. Afterwards, let’s discuss ways I can improve the usefulness of my questions.
Do you want to learn more about using Copilot? Take ITLD’s Introduction to Microsoft Copilot today, and see what the tool can do for you.