Young Americans Want AI in Higher Ed - And They're Worried About Jobs
A new Sine Institute Poll shows a clear message from 18- to 34-year-olds: AI feels like a threat to their careers, and it still belongs in the classroom. Most didn't get AI training in high school, and they don't want to repeat that mistake in college.
The survey, conducted by Generation Lab with 1,000+ interviews from Sept. 5-13, 2025, covered higher education's purpose, civil discourse, decision-making about college, and AI. Partners included the Sine Institute of Policy and Politics at American University, Future Caucus, Close Up Foundation and the Kogod School of Business.
Key Signals for Higher Education Leaders
- 78% say AI didn't get enough attention in high school.
- 55% believe AI will limit their career opportunities.
- 72% say AI must be taught in school for career readiness.
- 45% think college is more relevant now; 42% say less.
- 72% agree financial security is essential to the "American Dream."
- 69% cite cost as the top or second reason college may not be necessary; the average annual cost tops $38,000 (Education Data Initiative).
- 46% say the primary reason to attend college is a better job or salary.
- 69% view civic discourse as a crisis or serious problem.
What Students Expect From Universities
Respondents want higher ed to be accessible, build critical thinking, and prepare them for work. "The Sine Institute's latest poll demonstrates that young people value civic education and that they want more of it," AU President Jonathan Alger said. The throughline: practical skills, clear pathways to jobs and real discussion on hard issues.
Molly O'Rourke, senior advisor at the Sine Institute, noted the shift: this year's poll zeroed in on higher education and AI during "a very important and sensitive time." She added that AU is already responding through strategic planning and Kogod's focus on how AI affects the job market.
The AI Gap Is Now a Curriculum Problem
Students see the gap. They didn't get AI literacy early on, and they want it built into college. "This is a call to action for every university and college and at Kogod, we're meeting the moment with ambition and drive," said Kogod Dean David Marchick.
Eleven AU students served on the advisory board for the poll. As one put it, "Critical thinking encourages cooperation on issues that we can find common ground on." That should anchor AI education: skills, ethics and discernment, not just tools.
Action Plan: Build AI Fluency Without Losing Your Mission
- Integrate AI basics across gen-ed and majors: terminology, capabilities, limits and practical use cases.
- Adopt clear policies on AI use, transparency and assessment integrity. Teach how to cite AI outputs and verify claims.
- Run faculty upskilling sprints: prompt-writing, evaluation frameworks and assignment redesign.
- Embed AI into career prep: resume screening sims, portfolio projects, employer-led challenges and micro-internships.
- Stand up an AI ethics thread: bias, privacy, IP, environmental costs and domain-specific guardrails.
- Measure outcomes: track employment, internship conversion, skills badges and course-level AI competency.
Cost, Relevance and the Job Promise
Students are split on relevance, but aligned on outcomes and price. The top motivator is still a better job or salary, with cost as the main friction. That requires transparency on ROI and faster paths to marketable skills.
- Publish skill maps for each program: which tools, which projects, which roles.
- Offer short credentials stacked into degrees; make them eligible for aid where possible.
- Expand paid work-based learning and employer-validated projects.
- Bundle textbooks/tech and negotiate student AI tool access to cut hidden costs.
Civic Discourse Is a Skill, Too
Most respondents say civic discourse is in crisis. AU's Project on Civic Dialogue is one model: events, programs and facilitated discussions that make disagreement a learnable skill. "There needs to be a collaboration between different groups of people to recognize that you have different opinions, but we still need to be able to find common ground," said student Julia Cucchiara.
Trust: A Window for Higher Ed
Even as trust in major institutions dips, students still place confidence in colleges and universities. "It puts colleges and universities at the forefront of continuing to earn that trust and confidence," O'Rourke said. That's permission-and pressure-to move first.
Move in the Next 90 Days
- Audit syllabi for AI use and ethics; publish a student-facing guide.
- Run a faculty workshop series and a student AI fundamentals bootcamp.
- Update career services with AI job-search tools, portfolios and mock assessments.
- Launch two employer-partnered, AI-infused capstones or challenge labs.
- Set up an AI governance group with students, faculty and industry advisors.
If you need ready-to-use materials and course ideas, explore curated AI learning paths by role here: Complete AI Training - Courses by Job.
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