College students are panicking about artificial intelligence. Here’s why they shouldn’t
By Dorie Clark | Published: 2025-11-03 07:00:00 | Source: Fast Company – leadership
As more than 19 million As American college students prepare to finish their fall semester and begin looking forward to internships and jobs next spring, it is natural for them — and their families — to feel anxious about the fate of the job market in the age of artificial intelligence. In fact, the CEO of Anthropic anticipation This summer, and within the next five years — and perhaps sooner — the adoption of artificial intelligence could reduce entry-level employment in white-collar occupations by 50%. The impact is already being felt: job advertisements in companies at the beginning of a career are becoming tangible down 15%While orders increased by 30%. separate Stanford study It found that AI displacement, at this point, appears to be disproportionately affecting younger workers
These changes are certainly worrying. But despite the current, often overheated rhetoric, they are not unprecedented.
Of course, we’ve heard of lamp makers and horseshoe makers. A hundred years ago, electricity and cars replaced them, the economy continued to grow and they found something else to do. But the dot-com bubble of 25 years ago, when we first launched our careers, is a more notable example. Talking about startupsInformation highway“It has also sparked dystopian predictions that tens of millions of people will lose their jobs due to Internet-enabled automation, leading to”End of work.”
The functional displacement was, in some cases, real. One of us (Dorie) started her career as a journalist at a weekly newspaper, and after just one year in her first job, she became… Demobilization When the economics of ad-supported paper I stumbled. But Dorie — like most of us — managed to adapt, finding new careers in politics and nonprofit management before becoming an entrepreneur. The overall economy has been performing well, with the current unemployment rate at a fair level 4.3%,compared to 4.9% In 2001, when Dory lost her job
The pattern is also clear with regard to individuals’ life experience. Alexis, along with her co-author Nancy Hale, did just that I searched Harvard Class of 1975, examining generational differences and patterns. My surprising finding is that the experience of college students today is very similar to the experience of students 50 years ago. Despite changing external circumstances (whether campus protests over the Vietnam War or Gaza, and the political realities of the Nixon or Trump administration), students’ career hopes and fears remain essentially the same. Can I find an interesting and meaningful career? What are the “best” skills to develop, and where should I focus my professional development? Can I support myself, and ultimately my family, under changing economic circumstances?
So, in the midst of these real, but familiar, concerns, what advice can we share on how to prepare for the age of AI without panicking?
1. Use AI as a competitive advantage
First, take advantage of the fact that there is no Advantage of holding the position In using artificial intelligence now. If you are a recent law school graduate, a senior partner with 30 years of professional experience and contacts will always have an advantage over you in his or her knowledge of case law and ability to attract clients. But no professional outside of academia has 30 years of AI experience, so young professionals have as much opportunity as anyone else to gain knowledge, experience and professional standing by deploying AI in their jobs. In fact, AI is particularly valuable for young people, e.g Studies show The use of artificial intelligence is most beneficial for employees with less experience
2. Focus on developing a set of transferable skills
Second, focus on developing broad sets of transferable skills. We saw what happened when conventional wisdom (of Politicians Business leaders have converged on the idea that everyone needs software programming training. Now, in the wake of layoffs at big tech companies and a hiring slowdown, it’s newly minted Software engineers They struggle to find jobs. if Professional renewal It will be essential for most of us throughout our careers, as we need to develop skills that can be applied in multiple areas. For example, when Dorie lost her job as a journalist, she applied her writing experience and knowledge of politics (the beat she covered) to focus on her next job as a campaign spokeswoman.
3. Building relationships
Finally, indulge in personal relationships, because – unlike you – the AI can’t go to the water cooler. With enough data about meetings and emails, it is true that it can analyze professional networks and see networks of influence within organizations. (Although many organizations are still a long way from being able to fully deploy and leverage the power of this analysis.) But, at least for now, AI won’t be able to capture what’s there. no Taken in writing, from the break room gossip And speculation, whispered advice and exchanged favors.
 Of course, we are not suggesting that you become a Machiavellian operator, using hints and demanding reciprocity. But, in all the discourse about what AI can and cannot replace, what seems clear is that the connections between people — and the deeper principles that govern them, such as the general desire to… Return good deeds in kind What others have done for us is likely to continue. Investing in understanding others and trying to help them wherever possible still seems like a worthy bet in the age of artificial intelligence.
In the past, young professionals could adapt to a new technological reality and find ways to make it their own. We believe this will happen again, and it may take some time pressure Far from the college experience, students realize that no one can predict the future and, therefore, there is no “right answer” to be had as we navigate life’s choices.
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(tags for translation) Artificial Intelligence
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