AI is changing the rules of career readiness
From journalism to engineering, students are learning how to work with artificial intelligence rather than compete against it.
Artificial intelligence is changing what it means to be workforce ready.
Healthcare, finance, manufacturing, education, journalism and marketing are all integrating AI into everyday work. McKinsey & Co.’s “State of Organizations 2026” found that 88% of organizations use AI in at least one business function.
That shift increases the value of both technical fluency and distinctly human abilities, said Samuel Jay, Ph.D., executive director of Digital Learning and AI Strategy at MSU Denver.
“What will remain valuable in the workplace is what has always been valuable: the human qualities machines can’t replace,” Jay said. “The humanities teach empathy, perspective-taking and ethical reasoning. As AI takes on more of the work we want to offload, graduates will need to discern which responsibilities should remain human and which AI can handle.”
As AI becomes more common in the workplace, many students are questioning what skills they’ll need after graduation and whether the technology could reshape — or even replace — the careers they’re preparing to enter.
Emerging research, however, suggests that AI is changing the nature of many jobs rather than simply eliminating them. The Strada Education Foundation found that senior talent leaders are nearly three times more likely to say AI will increase entry-level hiring than reduce it. More than 40% report that AI has shifted new employees away from routine administrative work and toward more analytical responsibilities.
William Block, an Industrial Design student, said using AI in his coursework has changed how he imagines his future career.
“The more I use it, the less I think AI is going to take my job,” Block said. “It changes what I think my job is going to be. I become a manager of the AI, and then I need to apply my discretion and critical thinking to what’s there.”
Steve Geinitz, Ph.D., associate professor in the Computer Sciences Department, said graduates who can identify where AI improves a process — and where human expertise is still essential — will be well positioned to help organizations use the technology more strategically.
“To be considered AI proficient, graduates will need to be able to define a problem before trying to solve it; identify its moving parts and determine whether AI can reduce a burden, eliminate an inefficiency or create time for higher-value work; and then direct the technology accordingly,” Geinitz said.
That means understanding more than how to enter a prompt into ChatGPT.
RELATED: Future-proof: Pilots will still soar in an AI-assisted world
Students do not necessarily need to know how to code, Geinitz said, but they should understand their field well enough to identify bottlenecks and help shape an effective technical solution.
“You need to know what problem you want developers to solve,” he said. “Being able to communicate in ways developers can wrap their heads around will continue to become more important and valuable.”
At MSU Denver, AI instruction is being integrated into courses across campus. Business students can explore AI through courses and certificates. Journalism students are examining how generative AI is changing media production. Engineering students use AI in remote sensing coursework, while future educators develop AI literacy through educational technology classes.
The University is also launching AI Fundamentals, a new elective for students from any major, taught by Geinitz.
AI Fundamentals debuts this fall
This fall, MSU Denver will offer a new course, AI Fundamentals. Open to students of every major, AI Fundamentals introduces the practical skills needed to use artificial intelligence responsibly and effectively in any career. Through hands-on activities and real-world case studies, students explore machine learning, generative AI, ethics, bias, privacy and decision-making.
No programming experience is required. Sign up for DSML 190A: AI Fundamentals in Banner.
The course, which is intended to introduce practical AI literacy to students across disciplines, requires no coding experience and covers machine learning, generative AI, ethics, bias, privacy and decision-making through hands-on activities and real-world case studies.
Geinitz hopes students who take the course learn two things. “The first is that AI isn’t magic. It’s just data, math and human choices, which hopefully helps to remove a lot of the intimidation people have about AI.”
The second is that the stakes are real and that “That’s what ChatGPT told me” should never be their answer to a tough question. If they walk out confident enough to jump in but careful enough to ask hard questions, then in my mind the course has been a success.”
The workplace may be changing rapidly, but Jay believes AI-savvy students are entering it with an advantage.
“A college graduate who can see the complexity of a job and know where AI can add value or eliminate routine tasks so that time can be reinvested in higher-value work is going to be a rock star,” Jay said. “And that’s not really a technical skill as much as it is a human skill.”
