Over the summer, college graduates have sent out hundreds of applications and struggled to land entry-level jobs, with around half saying AI is already changing hiring in their field.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that the unemployment rate for recent graduates ages 22 to 27 was 5.7% in June.
Most of the graduates think AI is to blame for their employment struggles. In a ZipRecruiter survey this year, 47% said AI had already affected hiring in their field.
Economists on Fox Business and CNBC will go back and forth over how much AI is actually to blame, but one thing is evident: the workplace young Americans are entering is changing fast.
Education analysts believe the bigger question for students heading back to campus is: what should universities teach when AI can already perform many of the tasks graduates once spent years learning to do?
Cornerstone University President Gerson Moreno-Riaño argues the answer is not banning ChatGPT or simply teaching students how to write better prompts.
“He can discuss why AI literacy has to mean more than knowing how to use ChatGPT; why students need to learn how to question, verify, and sometimes reject what AI tells them; and whether colleges are doing enough to prepare graduates not simply to use increasingly powerful technology, but to exercise judgment over it,” said Riano.
