Introduction

David Kim, a senior at UNC-Chapel Hill majoring in computer science, has applied to 326 jobs and only reached the interview stage for three. This is not uncommon for his peers, some of whom have applied to around 1,000 jobs without success. The competitive job market is influenced by the economy, but also by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

The Impact of AI

AI aims to match or surpass human intelligence in problem-solving, making it financially attractive to businesses. Kim expressed concerns about job automation due to AI, stating, “I think from an economic standpoint, [AI] is definitely going to take away some jobs. And that’s scary.”

Mohammad Hossein Jarrahi, a professor at UNC-CH, studies the relationship between humans and AI in the workforce. He believes the threat of AI lies in its self-learning capabilities, which could make knowledge workers redundant.

“If you’re not worried, you’re probably not paying attention,” Jarrahi said.

Undergraduate Uncertainty

Sarayu Thondapu, a sophomore at UNC-CH, is already concerned about AI’s impact on her future career in law. Programs like LegalGPT can perform tasks similar to those of legal assistants, putting junior attorneys at risk.

“I wanted to go into law to help people, but I worry that relying too much on AI might make me forget why I’m there in the first place,” Thondapu said.

To stay competitive, she is incorporating technology classes and a data science credential into her studies.

AI vs. College Degrees

The value of college degrees is being questioned in the era of AI. Google offers career certificates in technology that take less time and money than a traditional degree. Duke University now offers an AI Master of Engineering program, which costs around $75,877 for a typical 12-month duration.

Jared Bailey, president of Duke’s AI Competition Club, believes the program is worth the investment. “A smart student investigates to understand if their education will have a fair return on investment,” he said.

Embracing AI

Professional editor Erin Servais has incorporated AI into her career, using ChatGPT for copy editing. She believes that editors who learn to use AI will have better job security.

“We don’t want AI to do our jobs because we still need to double-check it and ensure the quality and factual accuracy,” Servais said.

Scott Geier, a professor at UNC-CH, advises students to learn about AI to stay relevant in the job market. “You’ve got to make yourself relevant with using AI in currently what you’re doing,” he said.

For more information, visit the full article on WRAL.

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