Like many classmates around her, 20-year-old Stephanie Parker has recently been paying close attention to the impact of AI on her career prospects.
Parker, a sophomore at a small liberal arts college in the northeastern United States, told CNBC Make It that her ultimate goal was to become a doctor and researcher. But she admitted: “AI makes me wonder what these careers will look like when I finish all my studies and training.”
What she originally cared about most was patient care, which was “the humanistic part of medicine.” But now more and more people are accustomed to talking to AI chatbots and asking for health advice. She is worried that the medical industry will no longer pay attention to “the connection and warmth between people” in the future.
Nearly 40% of students want to change tracks, and AI disrupts career plans
Parker’s anxiety is not unique. Nowadays, many college students are thinking: What will their favorite job look like in a few years? Even when I graduate, will the market still recruit new people?
Many people have already made major choices because of AI, or have thought about changing directions.
On August 19, CNBC and SurveyMonkey released the “Quarterly Survey Report on AI and Employment”. The data shows that: nearly one-third (31%) of students and part-time learners who are still in school have changed their target industry or are considering changing careers because of AI. Among the students who have not yet joined the workforce, this proportion reaches 39%.
Not only industry choice, everyone’s career planning adjustments are also reflected in all aspects:
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45% of people have changed or reconsidered the direction of the skills they want to develop.
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34% of people have adjusted the types of positions they want to submit to
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35% of people changed their favorite target company
The survey was conducted from July 22 to 27, covering 1,686 students and professionals across the United States, and has a sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
Alison Srivastava, an education and labor market economist at Niche, a school ranking review website, said that AI is destined to subvert the job market, and it is a natural reaction for students to worry about their career prospects.
“Everyone has heard too many contradictory statements – sometimes it is said that AI will create a large number of new jobs, and sometimes it is said that AI will eliminate many jobs. The debate goes back and forth, and everyone will be confused.” She said.
But Srivastava also expressed concern: Many students now “rush to make decisions before they understand the true impact of AI on various professions.” In fact, many impacts have not yet been determined.
Are even computer majors in the cold? Nearly 40% of students are considering changing majors
The anxiety caused by AI has directly affected the major choice of college students.
A CNBC survey found that nearly 40% of school students and working learners have considered changing majors, adjusting research directions, or modifying course selection plans because of AI; among unemployed students, the proportion of students who have considered changing majors has increased to 44%.
A report released in April by Gallup and the educational nonprofit Lumina Foundation reached similar conclusions:Based on a survey of 3,801 U.S. students in October 2025, about 42% of undergraduates and 56% of junior college students said that they have considered changing their majors “to a considerable extent” because they are worried about the impact of AI.
In an interview with CNBC Make It in April this year, Dr. Courtney Brown, Vice President of Impact and Planning at the Lumina Foundation, said that the core concerns of many students are:“Can the time and money I invest in a degree be recouped in the job market?”
Jessica Roffey, a career planner for college students and founder of career consulting company Career Beginnings, said she understands why students now “have a wait-and-see attitude toward many majors.”
Take the computer science major as an example. The unemployment rate for computer science graduates in the United States will rise to 7% in 2024. After experiencing the recruitment expansion boom in previous years, many major technology companies have now reduced the scale of campus recruitment.
But she also emphasized that this does not mean that the computer major is not worth studying: “Computer talents are needed in all walks of life, not just big technology companies. Even if you study computer and end up working in a technical position in a bank or hospital, it will still be very valuable.”
Don’t be in a hurry to change your major, practice these core competencies first
Luo Fei’s advice to students is: Instead of worrying about which major or industry to choose to “stable employment”, it is better to change the way of thinking – think about “which skills should be developed to make oneself more market competitive.”
In her opinion, what the current job market values most is critical thinking skills, in addition to problem-solving abilities, curiosity and questioning spirit. These abilities are particularly critical in positions where AI is deeply applied: companies need people who can rigorously evaluate the content of AI output and judge its accuracy, rather than people who “believe whatever AI says.”
Srivastava hopes that students can follow their true interests instead of just pursuing careers that “seem to have more job opportunities.” “You don’t have to plan your future clearly,” she said. “Work hard to learn what you are interested in and what you are good at, and polishing these abilities is enough.”
