Colorado State University’s Economics Club addressed questions regarding artificial intelligence and the future of students’ careers by inviting a panel of local industry experts and economists April 22.
Many soon-to-be graduates attended the event to get a better understanding of how AI will affect their job search and whether they’ll need to use it in their upcoming professions.
Will graduates have a job now that AI is here?
Students at the panel expressed concerned about whether or not they would find a job after graduating because of AI and were curious as to what industries would be hit the hardest.
Within Larimer County, Hope Hartman serves as the executive director of the Small Business Development Center. She said she doesn’t see AI replacing jobs in her sector.
“There are some industries where some jobs will be replaced; I don’t want us to be naive about that, but I don’t think it’s going to be as much as we think,” Hartman said. “I think it’s a game changer, and I don’t see it replacing many jobs in the small business space.”
Hartman acknowledged that larger industries and corporations have been experiencing significant layoffs because of AI. For example, Meta — the company that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — reportedly plans to cut 10% of its workforce due to AI’s ability to code and help write software.
Panelist Adam Crowe, who serves as the economic development manager for Larimer County Economic and Workforce Development, said that a lot of these layoffs are a result of AI’s ability to replace individual tasks.
“If you imagine a job is made up of 40 different tasks and AI replaces 10 of them, then over time, you’re going to need fewer of those folks in that role as an organization,” Crowe said.
Crowe said this is what is happening within larger organizations like Meta, with white-collar jobs that take place at a computer being the most vulnerable.
“What we see is that if your tasks involve you sitting at a desk in front of a computer by yourself, AI is likely to replace most of the work you do,” Crowe said.
Another panelist, CSU economics Assistant Professor Zachary Schaller, said that AI is having two major impacts on the labor market: automation and augmentation. Automation is AI’s ability to reduce repetitive tasks, which leads to job loss. Augmentation, on the other hand, is AI’s ability to supplement workers and make them more efficient.
“It’s not man versus machine; it’s man with machine,” Schaller said. “There are jobs and there are a lot of tasks that are being automated and therefore replaced, … but I think most jobs will have a high degree of augmentation, and that’s a huge opportunity for someone.”
Should future workers use AI?
When asked if workers who don’t utilize AI will fall behind, CSU economics Professor Martin Shields answered yes. He added that workers are rewarded for how productive they are, and employers will take into account their performance, especially when a company is downsizing their workforce.
“(AI) makes people more productive, … and people who aren’t as productive lose their jobs,” Shields said. “Even if you’re downsizing, they go through the people and say, ‘Let’s keep a, b and c because they’re the most productive workers.’”
Hartman said she believes everyone should at least know how the technology works.
“I am a big AI literacy advocate,” Hartman said. “It doesn’t mean that if you are AI literate that you have to use it. It means that you understand it and know when to use it, why to use it and maybe when not to use it.”
Crowe pointed out that the newest generation of workers will most likely be expected to know how to use AI and that job applicants should make employers aware of how they use it in their workflow.
“You all were raised as digital natives, and there’s going to be an expectation that you understand AI,” Crowe said. “I think you should talk about it when you’re applying for jobs.”
Schaller highlighted that although AI has the ability to improve a worker’s productivity, the interpersonal skills students learn in college are the ones that will set them apart in the job market.
“You’re learning the softer skills that are actually becoming what differentiates you from AI,” Schaller said. “College isn’t the only way to develop those skills, but it’s a great way.”
How can workers use AI ethically?
Although most panelists advocated for the use of AI, all of them emphasized that the technology should be used ethically as a tool and not as a replacement for critical thinking in the workplace.
Crowe added that students that abuse the use of AI in their school work will face the consequences very quickly in their professional careers.
“If you’re working eight to 10 hours a day for years, you can’t hide,” Crowe said. “You can’t hide your lack of abilities behind AI.”
In fact, the U.S. job market is currently in what is referred to as a ‘low-fire, low-hire’ state.
“They’re not hiring young people, I think, because they don’t trust the skills that students are coming out with,” said Daniele Tavani, chair of the economics department at CSU.
The over-dependence of AI is further preventing graduates from securing jobs, Tavani said, all because employers don’t trust that workers actually have the skills they put on their resumes.
“If you’re using AI unethically right now at CSU to cheat on your homework, you’re not going to be able to find a job later on,” Tavani said.
To try and combat these challenges young workers will face, the panelists encouraged students to demand better AI policies from their universities so that, when they do apply for a job, an employer can trust their institution took the issue seriously.
Additionally, Crowe said job applicants should be honest if they use AI to help with a skill or task that is required on an application, and they should specify that AI did not do the work for them.
“Be very clear that AI didn’t do the work for you because that’s one of the things that hiring managers and HR professionals are very concerned with right now,” Crowe said. “So talk about it, but don’t make it the the focus.”
What do future workers think?
After the panel, many students said they felt more informed but still uneasy.
“I feel more prepared; it’s not necessarily a more positive outlook,” said Graham Andersen, a CSU student studying business. “I have more things that I would want to try to do, and I feel like I can navigate the workplace and job market better.”
Liv Bollenbacher and Sophia Johnson are co-chairs of the economics club and are graduating this May. They said they decided to organize the panel because of their own curiosity surrounding how AI will affect the job market.
“I would say I’m definitely going to be more open about how much I use AI and come up with more experiences where I’ve used it in an efficient way,” Bollenbacher said.
Reach Katya Arzubi at news@collegian.com or on social media @RMCollegian.