We’ve all been there: you send a colleague a quick teams message or email saying, “Can you take care of this?” and what you get back isn’t quite what you had in mind. It’s not their fault. They didn’t have the full picture: who or what it was for, how it should look, why it was needed.
Communicating with AI works in a similar way.
Whether you’re using AI tools to draft emails, analyze reports and data, generate marketing content, or brainstorm ideas and strategies, everything hinges on your instructions — your prompt. The clearer and more complete it is, the better the output.
In collegiate recreation and throughout higher education, this skill is becoming increasingly important. With shrinking budgets, evolving expectations, time constraints and increased pressure to deliver results, learning how to effectively utilize AI isn’t merely helpful — it’s a game-changer.
This is where prompt engineering comes in.
What Is Prompt Engineering?
Prompt engineering is the practice of writing clear, structured directions to guide AI tools toward a specific, useful result. Think of it like giving a recipe to a chef. If you say, “Make something with chicken,” any number of recipes may show up on your plate. But if you say, “Make a grilled chicken wrap with avocado, tomato and chipotle mayo,” the results will be far more aligned with what you want. Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot operate without menus or drop-downs. The only instructions they receive come from your words. So, your prompt is both the blueprint and the boundaries shaping the tone, content, structure and constraints of the output.Why Does It Matter?
AI tools are getting better by the day. But they still largely do what you asked, not what you meant. In the rec world, that might mean:- A prompt like “Write a message to students about our new hours” returns a generic email that misses your tone.
- A request for “a SWOT analysis” results in a business school textbook recap instead of insights tailored to your specific rec operation.
- A broad ask like “Tell me about leadership” yields 600 words of Wikipedia.
Seven Best Practices for Prompting
Try using these seven principles to sharpen your prompting skills and get higher-quality responses every time. 1. Clarity and Specificity are Superpowers Be specific about what you want. Include details like audience, tone, format and length. Instead of saying, “Summarize this report,” try, “Summarize this report for a university VP. Use a leadership-focused tone and format it as five key bullet points, each under 20 words.”2. Assign a Role
Set the tone by giving the AI a persona. This helps it calibrate language, formality and context. Example: “You’re a student affairs communications expert. Write a welcome email to new student employees for a rec center.”3. Give It Context
AI works best with background. Tell it what it needs to know to respond meaningfully, or upload examples for context. Example: “Our student audience includes many first-generation college students. They prefer short, friendly messages with emojis and clear instructions.”4. Break it Down
Complex asks? Use steps. Example: “Step 1: List the top three benefits of intramurals for student retention. Step 2: Draft a tweet promoting them.”5. Specify the Format
Tell the AI how you want the output to look — bullets, table, summary, etc. Example: “Return the results in a 2-column table with the headings ‘Program’ and ‘Potential Sponsor’.”6. Right-Size the Prompt
Prompts that are too long can dilute or lose early instructions. Prompts that are too short leave gaps the AI may fill with assumptions. Keep prompts clear and concise — long enough to convey details, short enough to retain focus.7. Iterate and Refine
Prompting is not usually a one-and-done process. If the response misses the mark — wrong tone, missing info, inaccurate, wrong format, etc. — don’t start over. Tweak the prompt and re-run. Example: “This version is too formal. Please rewrite in a more conversational tone, keeping the length the same and focusing on student impact.”The Real Opportunity with Prompt Engineering
Prompt engineering isn’t just a technical skill — it’s a communication skill. Learning to prompt with intention and precision transforms AI tools into true collaborators. It’s a powerful way to improve productivity, streamline workflows and elevate the quality of your work. AI can become a time-saver and multiplier, but only if you know how to steer it. Just like weightlifting or program planning, it takes practice, reps and feedback. And in campus recreation — where innovation and resourcefulness are daily necessities — that advantage is well worth pursuing.
Matt Schmiedl
Matt Schmiedl is the associate director, Marketing & Strategic Development at Cleveland State University (CSU). He has more than 20 years of experience in marketing and graphic design working in a variety of industries and sectors, most notably higher education and publishing. He has been working with CENTERS, LLC for more than a decade at CSU, leading marketing and business development on behalf of the University Recreation and Wellbeing department. He has developed and launched a number of initiatives to catalyze business growth and implemented new marketing strategies to build engagement with both the CSU and Cleveland communities. Matt is a nine-time NIRSA Creative Excellence Award recipient, the recipient of the CENTERS Quest for X Award in 2017, and the winner of an APEX Award of Excellence and Magnum Opus Honorable Mention Award, both in 2011.
