The debate surrounding AI has become increasingly heated in recent months. With graduates being told they need to master AI and the job market becoming increasingly difficult for newcomers to break into, it’s no wonder college students feel like they’re wasting precious time and money.
Even before generative AI became a big part of our lives, people were already concerned about whether a college degree was worth it anymore. Many graduates report difficulty finding jobs for which they are qualified. University enrollment has fallen significantly, especially among young men, who are choosing to study trades or start their own businesses. Tuition costs are steadily rising, and with so many examples of people succeeding without pursuing higher education, why enroll?
Many of the entry-level jobs typically available after graduation will be, and are already being, replaced by AI. These positions include copywriting, graphic design, accounting, sales, software engineering, and consulting. It is cheaper for companies to invest in AI subscriptions than to risk giving salaries and benefits to inexperienced people.
As a student, this is extremely upsetting on many levels. College is expensive and time-consuming, so the effort you put in should be worth it. These entry-level jobs are supposed to give graduates the opportunity to enter the market and build on their resumes and skills laid down at university. Now they claim that our degrees are obsolete because AI can earn them instead.
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When AI makes degrees obsolete, students are more hesitant, anxious, and angry than anything else. Consider this video of a graduate booing a commencement speaker. Eric Schmidt and gloria caulfield When we are told we need to rely on AI. This leaves them unsure of how to proceed with their education and career. As AI increases exponentially, it is difficult to assess what will happen to the job market.
On a human level, this is sad because it sacrifices humanity and quality. AI cannot reproduce the same level of quality as humans. It causes a lot of errors and creates data that doesn’t actually exist. On top of that, I get anxious when I read something I thought was written by a human and find out it was written by an AI.
In addition to personal grievances about losing jobs, many graduates have problems with AI for ethical and environmental reasons. College-educated people tend to be more concerned about environmental issues, and one of the hottest debates surrounding AI right now is water consumption and land use required for data centers.
Most jobs aren’t really fungible. AI’s work is shallow, lacks depth, and is full of errors. If companies prioritize profits over humanity, who will run them when experienced workers age out of the workforce and others are no longer given a chance to start?
