Artificial intelligence has transitioned from a peripheral innovation to a core infrastructure shaping higher education within a remarkably short period. While conceptual debates on AI ethics, pedagogy, and academic integrity are expanding, empirically grounded syntheses that consolidate global evidence remain limited. This study addresses this gap by providing an integrated cross-domain synthesis and statistically grounded overview of AI adoption, use, and governance across higher education systems. Using a secondary statistical synthesis methodology, the study aggregates large-scale quantitative data published between 2021 and 2025 from reputable international sources, including student and faculty surveys, institutional reports, research indices, and regulatory datasets. Results demonstrate near-universal student adoption of AI tools, rapid but uneven professional engagement among faculty and staff, a sharp rise in AI-related academic misconduct, accelerating impacts on research production and scientific workflows, and persistent gaps in institutional preparedness, policy development, and equity. The findings reveal a widening disconnect between bottom-up AI adoption and top-down governance mechanisms, particularly in assessment design, academic integrity frameworks, faculty capacity building, and quality assurance systems. Moreover, this paper argues that AI can no longer be treated as an optional educational technology and must instead be governed as a foundational component of higher education infrastructure. The study concludes by outlining evidence-based policy implications for institutions, regulators, and quality assurance agencies, emphasizing the need for coordinated, adaptive, and equity-oriented governance frameworks grounded in empirical realities rather than speculative narratives.
Rima J. Isaifan (2026) studied this question.