Technology’s Effect on the Future of Work: Three Ways Higher Ed Can Lead the Way
It’s no secret that technology continues to change the world of work in substantial and innovative ways. Some job are disappearing while new ones are emerging. Only a couple of decades ago, could anyone have imagined roles like UX designer, Ruby developer, or content marketing strategist?
Technology will continue to be a major game-changer in how we work in the future. In fact, an article from Stanford Business titled “Four Ways Work Will Change in the Future” explains that by 2030, about half of today’s jobs will be gone and “automation will perform many current blue-collar and white-collar jobs, while independent contractors will fill a large fraction of future positions.”
If true, this has huge implications not only on the workers of the future, but also on the institutions charged with preparing the workers in the first place—colleges and universities. Below are three ways that higher ed institutions can address these technology-induced changes in the future of work.
Commit to the Value of the Liberal Arts
There is a tendency to think that only certain technical skills matter these days when it comes to the job market. And while it’s true that those in the more technical fields have access to a host of jobs—and their skill sets will continue to be needed—there are also non-technical skills that will become increasingly important.
Attributes like creativity, interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, ethical knowledge, and empathy, can’t be simulated by automation. Workers who can best demonstrate these skills will be in a unique position. Even today, employers are looking for workers with these hard-to-come-by qualities. An article in the Wall Street Journal explains that companies are having difficulty finding “applicants who can communicate clearly, take initiative, problem-solve, and get along with co-workers.”
These are exactly the skills that a liberal arts education provides its students. In other words, a course in Kantian ethics or Victorian prose can equip students for the type of thinking that will be more and more important as more straightforward tasks become automated. This is why, as technology continues to change the landscape of the world of work, it will be important for higher ed institutions to embrace a liberal arts-focused curriculum.
Meet the Needs of Adult Students
As technology continues to alter the world of work, more and more adults need to learn new skills. Just look around. This Forbes article details how adult students now make up the majority of students seeking a bachelor’s degree. There is an opportunity for institutions to provide more programs, certificates, credentials, and other educational opportunities to these adult working students in order to address the shifting needs of their workplace.
This is obviously not a small investment, so it’s important to be strategic about what you can offer and in what modality. It might be wise to start with a certificate on, say, data science, and then develop longer-term strategy for offering full-scale graduate degrees or adult degree programs. We have written about marketing adult programs as well as reaching this audience in the past, which is a complex and involved topic. Keep in mind that technology’s influence on what workers will be required to know means that greater and greater numbers of adults will turn to higher ed—either for a single credential or a complete degree program—to help prepare them to keep pace. Higher ed needs to be ready for this continued trend over the next few decades.
Form Organizational Partnerships to Augment Educational Offerings
Similar to developing educational opportunities for adults, it’s worth building partnerships with organizations in order to support their employees as technology continues to alter the landscape. Partnerships can include offering employees of a given organization a discount on related programs and certificates, which can certainly be compelling.
However, an even more compelling approach is to offer educational opportunities on-site at organizations. It’s one thing for an employee to see that their organization offers a discount to take courses at your school, but it’s another thing to see that they can actually take courses right where they work.
Turning back to traditional students, it’s equally important to form partnerships with organizations that allow students to get an internship or work experience on-site. Inviting stakeholders from partnering organizations to help shape certain courses to meet new technological challenges is a great way to leverage organizational partnerships that educate and equip students for success once they graduate.
The best equipped students will be those who have a certain level of technical proficiency (the degree necessary will depend on their field of study) coupled with the type of skills that a good liberal arts program provides. The ability to solve problems creatively, work well with others, and understand the ethical implications of emergent technologies gives students the readiness to address challenges in roles that don’t even exist yet. There is a great opportunity for higher ed institutions to take advantage of rapid technological innovation by preparing both traditional and adult students for tomorrow’s workplace.
5° Branding is a creative agency devoted to building strong brands in higher education.
