As artificial intelligence transforms the economy, students need to “future-proof” themselves, educators warn.
Exactly how jobs and professions will change is not yet clear, but universities tasked with producing employable graduates are already thinking about how higher education can stay relevant amid the uncertainty.
“We are in the difficult position of not fully knowing what the concrete outcomes of AI’s impact will be,” says University of Tokyo President Teruo Fujii. “But we are at the same time responsible for educating students to enter a society that will essentially be reinvented by this advanced technology,” he adds.
Teruo Fujii, president of the University of Tokyo, advises students to "future proof" themselves in
Fujii was recently in New York for an AI symposium and moderated a panel discussion last month at AI House Davos, held in conjunction with the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting.
He says students who are entering university during this period of flux can “future-proof” themselves by choosing certain academic pathways and participating in internships and real world experiences that will test what they’ve learned in the classroom.
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In the past, as auto assembly line workers or toll booth collectors were eliminated by automation, the focus was on how to retrain blue-collar workers. But because artificial intelligence can seemingly perform cognitive tasks, the technology may replace some white-collar jobs in fields traditionally pursued by university graduates.
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From language translation and text summarization to logical reasoning and predictive analysis, AI has the capacity to replace jobs in fields such as financial analysis, research and data analytics, and content creation.
Here are some tips from President Fujii for students to prepare for this new era:
Embrace interdisciplinary study as a new foundation for a university education
Being a specialist in one academic area may not be encompassing enough to tackle many of today’s complex challenges, such as those contending with climate change and infectious diseases. Students should be encouraged to be more interdisciplinary, exploring diverse disciplines and combining their strengths, such as humanities and social sciences with STEM fields, says Fujii.
For example, University of Tokyo’s “SPRING GX” program allows doctoral students from any of its schools to study humanities, business management, engineering, science and medicine to address the complex social challenges of “green transformation,” as industry focuses on generating growth while safeguarding resources.
Interdisciplinary study will also help foster skills that are unique to human beings, such as creativity and critical thinking, that will become even more valuable in a technologically advanced world.
“Students are developing their own expertise, but at the same time they could gain core knowledge about important, common issues,” Fujii adds. “These literacies should be integrated with a sound understanding of technology and data.”
Pursue “real life” experiences that put knowledge to the test
In a tech-driven world, real-life experiences become more valuable. Students need to know what machines can do but also discover what sets them apart — what they can do that machines cannot. They must integrate the classroom experience with real world experience, the university president said.
These experiences allow students to assess their competence and identify areas for improvement. The University of Tokyo provides hands-on learning opportunities in diverse settings, fostering empathy and global business experience, from remote villages to overseas corporate branches. Experience-based learning reveals knowledge gaps, encouraging students to address them. Unlike machines, Fujii says, students translate knowledge into new contexts, take risks, and learn that failure is part of the process.
Keep learning, post-graduation, as skills demands evolve
As AI and technology transform the workplace, there's a shared responsibility to avoid leaving anyone behind. The main challenge is to establish effective measures for continuous reskilling and upskilling, providing individuals with the tools to navigate a rapidly changing job market.
In this ongoing process, the potential for new technology or startup opportunities remains significant when students think about their careers. Consequently, educators' responsibilities extend beyond initial job placement or further study. Higher education must guide individuals throughout their careers, ensuring ongoing learning to maintain relevant and productive skills, Fujii says.
Some countries will have challenges that are unique to a given society. In a country like Japan, where education has traditionally focused on memorizing knowledge, the integration of AI into higher education may accelerate the need to shift how students learn. Fujii argues that, “the emphasis will now be on adapting to change.”
“The AI landscape is vast,” he says, and “is not limited to language models like GPT-4.”
This necessitates a new way of thinking about higher education in Japan. Under Fujii’s vision, the University of Tokyo is planning to create an entirely new college centered around a curriculum to nurture more autonomous, entrepreneurial and resilient individuals with a strong sense of social commitment to design within a rapidly-changing society.
As universities across the globe begin to integrate artificial intelligence into their curriculums, students may actually be more adept at the advanced technology than their professors.
“There may be a shift in the changing dynamics of education,” says Fujii. “Students may know more than their professors, highlighting a shift in the traditional roles within academia.”
