From Applications to Belonging: Using a Custom GPT to Support Fair, Safe, and Scalable Residential Admissions
Tracks
Track 1
| Thursday, May 7, 2026 |
| 10:45 AM - 11:30 AM |
| Hall C |
Overview
Student Experience & Wellbeing - Anirudha Saha
Speaker
Mr Anirudha Saha
Operations Manager
University of New South Wales - Anirudha Saha
From Applications to Belonging: Using a Custom GPT to Support Fair, Safe, and Scalable Residential Admissions
10:45 AM - 11:30 AMAbstract Overview
Australian universities are managing increasingly complex residential admissions environments: high application volumes, younger cohorts entering communal living, heightened wellbeing and safety responsibilities, and strong expectations around equity, transparency, and governance. At the same time, professional staff are under pressure to make high-stakes decisions quickly, consistently, and fairly.
This presentation explores how a custom GPT to support residential admissions and broader student success outcomes — not as an autonomous decision-maker, but as a bounded, human-in-the-loop decision support tool.
The session will walk through the practical design of the Custom GPT, showing how it applies existing behavioural rubrics, College cultural frameworks, and equity principles to assist staff in reviewing applications more consistently and efficiently. Realistic examples will demonstrate how the GPT assesses communal living readiness, flags cultural misalignment, supports equity-conscious review, and recommends when interviews are required to reduce risk.
Beyond admissions, the presentation will highlight how the same tool can support future leadership pipeline identification, including early indicators of Resident Mentor suitability and different leadership styles, as well as operational use cases such as allergen-aware menu recommendations that reduce administrative burden and support student wellbeing.
Crucially, the session will address governance and trust: what the GPT does and does not do, how human oversight is maintained, how risks are mitigated, and how transparency and auditability are embedded into the process. The presentation is grounded in lived operational experience rather than theory, offering attendees a realistic view of how AI can be safely integrated into student accommodation contexts.
Participants will leave with a clear understanding of how custom AI tools can enhance student experience and wellbeing, improve consistency and speed, and free staff capacity — without compromising human judgement, values, or accountability.
This presentation explores how a custom GPT to support residential admissions and broader student success outcomes — not as an autonomous decision-maker, but as a bounded, human-in-the-loop decision support tool.
The session will walk through the practical design of the Custom GPT, showing how it applies existing behavioural rubrics, College cultural frameworks, and equity principles to assist staff in reviewing applications more consistently and efficiently. Realistic examples will demonstrate how the GPT assesses communal living readiness, flags cultural misalignment, supports equity-conscious review, and recommends when interviews are required to reduce risk.
Beyond admissions, the presentation will highlight how the same tool can support future leadership pipeline identification, including early indicators of Resident Mentor suitability and different leadership styles, as well as operational use cases such as allergen-aware menu recommendations that reduce administrative burden and support student wellbeing.
Crucially, the session will address governance and trust: what the GPT does and does not do, how human oversight is maintained, how risks are mitigated, and how transparency and auditability are embedded into the process. The presentation is grounded in lived operational experience rather than theory, offering attendees a realistic view of how AI can be safely integrated into student accommodation contexts.
Participants will leave with a clear understanding of how custom AI tools can enhance student experience and wellbeing, improve consistency and speed, and free staff capacity — without compromising human judgement, values, or accountability.
Biography
Anirudha (Ani) Saha is the Operations Manager, Student Accommodation at UNSW, where he oversees a portfolio of 2,300+ beds across 12 buildings. With more than 15 years’ experience in residential life and operations across UNSW, the University of Sydney, UTS, and USQ, Ani focuses on building inclusive, high-performing living and learning communities.
His leadership spans crisis management, student wellbeing, equity-driven programming, and digital transformation. He has sustained near-full occupancy post-COVID, reduced accommodation debt, and strengthened student development initiatives that support belonging and graduate employability. Ani integrates data analytics, system automation, and responsible AI tools to enhance consistency, safety, and operational efficiency while keeping human judgement central.
He actively contributes to APSAA and national discussions on student accommodation governance, sustainability, and psychosocial risk management. Ani is committed to ensuring residential communities are safe, inclusive, and strategically aligned with university student success priorities.
