With artificial intelligence playing such a pivotal role, the future of employment is rapidly evolving and considerations are being given to which professions are likely to be redundant and which are likely to be in demand.
With the ability of writing, coding, analysing data and doing simple tasks, AI is now available to students, and they are wondering whether their university education will provide them with employment security in the future.
No degree is entirely immune from being affected by AI, but experts think that professions that involve physical activity or complex decision-making with human interaction may be the less vulnerable ones.
Healthcare is likely to continue being one of the robust sectors. Medical, nursing, dental and physiotherapy degrees include first contact with people, and situations where decisions must be made that can only partly be delegated to machines.
While the help of AI might be used by doctors and medical professionals, it is likely that the need for a trained human will never go away.
Opportunities for engineering would also remain, especially with regard to infrastructure and robotics, renewable energy or advanced technology.
AI might be a partner for engineers more than a challenger.
Human behaviour and relationships degrees may also have more worth.
AI systems cannot provide the same level of empathy, communication, and understanding of people that is needed in psychology, social work, counselling and education.
Professions that require hands-on experience could be somewhat safe as well. Workers in construction, electrical, mechanical maintenance and other “hands-on” trades must work in unpredictable situations in the real world.
Meanwhile, AI doesn’t seem to be making technology degrees obsolete.
Postgraduates, however, in computer science, cyber security, and data science and artificial intelligence may find new horizons by learning how to develop, maintain and protect an intelligent system.
But there are growing concerns that a degree for the sole purpose of being “AI-proof” may not be sufficient.
Rather than only ceasing to exist, the nature of the job may also evolve over time, so that students may have to continually develop new skills throughout the course of their working lives.
Today in the era of Artificial Intelligence, perhaps the safest qualification is a combination of specialised knowledge and skills that computers cannot easily replicate: creativity, critical thinking, adaptability and interpersonal skills.