Across the last two years, programs such as ChatGPT have ignited conversations about the role of AI in the workforce. But how are students feeling as they prepare to graduate with this computerized elephant in the room? In this episode of Offbeat, we spoke to University of Maryland students, staff and alumni to gauge how AI could impact the future of work.
CAROLINE PECORA: ONE OF THE BIGGEST TECHNOLOGICAL TRENDS OF THE 2020’S IS THE RISE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. NO… I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT A-I LIKE WHAT YOU SEE IN “THE TERMINATOR”…
I’M TALKING ABOUT APPS LIKE CHAT-G-P-T… GOOGLE’S BARD … MICROSOFT BING … AND SO MUCH MORE. WITH THE CREATION OF APPS THAT CAN HELP CREATE GROCERY LISTS OR WRITE A DECENT COVER LETTER… CHAT-G-P-T CAN SERVE AS A HELPFUL TOOL. BUT IT HAS ALSO RAISED CONCERNS AMONG MANY … FROM ACTORS IN HOLLYWOOD… TO SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS. AND IT’S NO DIFFERENT FOR STUDENTS AND FACULTY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND.
I’M CAROLINE PECORA. FOR THIS EPISODE OF OFFBEAT … I TALKED TO STUDENTS AND FACULTY TO GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT A-I IS… ITS BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS … AND HOW STUDENTS GRADUATING IN THE A-I ERA ARE FEELING ABOUT THEIR CAREERS.
SENIOR COMPUTER SCIENCE MAJOR SANDER SCHULHOFF DOES A-I RESEARCH AT THIS UNIVERSITY’S COMPUTATIONAL LINGUISTICS AND INFORMATION PROCESSING LAB. THE LAB AIMS TO IMPROVE HOW COMPUTERS PERFORM HUMAN LANGUAGE-RELATED TASKS. HE ALSO CO-FOUNDED LEARN PROMPTING … A GUIDE THAT HELPS USERS LEARN TO USE GENERATIVE A-I.
SCHULHOFF USES A-I TO AID HIS RESEARCH ON BOTANY AND COMPUTER–HUMAN INTERACTION.
SANDER SCHULHOFF: “I SEE IT MUCH MUCH MORE AS AN ASSISTANT TOOL THAT HELPS PEOPLE GET BORING STUFF DONE. AND MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT IT IS THAT I CAN MAKE IT DO SOMETHING THAT I DON’T WANT TO DO.”
CAROLINE PECORA: FOR THOSE WHO DON’T KNOW… GENERATIVE A-I REFERS TO DEEP-LEARNING PROGRAMS THAT CAN PRODUCE IMAGES OR TEXT BASED ON WHAT PEOPLE ASK OF IT AND THE INFORMATION USED TO TRAIN IT.
THE FUNCTIONS OF A-I SEEM ENDLESS. YOU’VE SEEN IT USED FOR FACE FILTERS ON INSTAGRAM… A-I CHAT BUDDIES LIKE “MY A-I”… AND EVEN WEBSITES THAT BUILD RESUMES.
FRESHMAN CLASSICAL LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE MAJOR MAXINE POE-JENSEN USES A-I AS A TOOL TO IMPROVE HER WRITING.
MAXINE POE-JENSEN: “I’M LIKE SELF CONSCIOUS AND I DON’T LIKE PEOPLE TO READ MY WORK… SO IT’S GOOD TO LIKE… I’LL GIVE LIKE A PORTION OF MY WRITING A-I AND BE LIKE … DOES THIS MAKE SENSE OR LIKE… WHAT CAN I DO TO MAKE IT MORE CONCISE ESPECIALLY FOR ESSAYS LIKE GRAMMAR IS A BIG PART OF IT. SO I’VE BEEN USING IT MORE FOR LIKE TECHNICAL THINGS I DON’T THINK I’VE EVER LIKE USED IT FOR LIKE SUBSTANCE OR GENERATING YOU KNOW … NEW IDEAS.”
CAROLINE PECORA: POE-JENSEN … WHO WANTS TO PURSUE A CAREER IN PUBLISHING … BELIEVES A-I CAN ADD TO HER EDITING PROCESS… BUT IT CAN’T REPLACE THE HUMAN MIND’S CREATIVITY.
THE INTRODUCTION OF A-I IN ACADEMIC SPACES PRESENTS A NEW CONCERN FOR STUDENTS: HOW A-I WILL IMPACT THEIR INDUSTRIES.
TOM GOLDSTEIN: “SO YOU SEE A LOT OF VERY STRONG OPINIONS THAT EITHER A-I HAS A LOT OF FUNDAMENTAL WEAKNESSES … AND WON’T BE ABLE TO DO A LOT OF THINGS. OR THAT A-I IS INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS AND WE’RE GOING TO SEE INCREDIBLY NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES COME FROM IT. BUT THE REALITY IS MUCH MORE IN BETWEEN.”
CAROLINE PECORA: THAT’S TOM GOLDSTEIN … THE DIRECTOR FOR MACHINE LEARNING AT THIS UNIVERSITY AND AN ENDOWED COMPUTER SCIENCE PROFESSOR.
TOM GOLDSTEIN: “AND WHAT THE REALITY IS GONNA BE A SHADE OF GRAY THAT’S IN BETWEEN … RIGHT? THERE ARE GOING TO BE WAYS THAT A-I IS VERY HELPFUL TO PEOPLE. AND THEY’RE GOING TO BE PROBLEMS THAT ARE CAUSED BY A-I. BUT AS WE SEE THOSE PROBLEMS AND PEOPLE COME ALONG WITH TOOLS PROPERLY TO MITIGATE THEM … WE WILL GET MORE EDUCATED ON HOW TO USE TOOLS PROPERLY TO MITIGATE THOSE SORTS OF PROBLEMS.”
CAROLINE PECORA: GOLDSTEIN RESEARCHES A NUMBER OF ISSUES RELATED TO A-I. IN REGARDS TO WHETHER ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS A FORCE FOR GOOD OR BAD… GOLDSTEIN BELIEVES PROPER USE IS WHAT MATTERS.
TOM GOLDSTEIN: “I THINK IT DEPENDS ON THE SITUATION. I THINK THAT… YOU KNOW… BY AND LARGE… THE GOAL OF TOOL DEVELOPERS IS TO MAKE IT AS HELPFUL AS POSSIBLE. BUT YOU KNOW… MISUSE OF THESE SORTS OF TOOLS CAN OBVIOUSLY CAUSE HARMS.”
CAROLINE PECORA: WITH A-I’S EMERGENCE IN THE ACADEMIC SPACE … SOME STUDENTS AT THIS UNIVERSITY ARE PLANNING TO MITIGATE ITS IMPACT ON THEIR CAREER PLANS.
KAT CLOSE … AN ALUM OF THIS UNIVERSITY… WORKS AS A U-X DESIGNER AND PRODUCT MANAGER. SHE IS ALSO THE FOUNDER OF A STARTUP DEDICATED TO HELPING SENIORS USE MODERN TECHNOLOGY.
CLOSE RECOGNIZES HOW A-I CAN SERVE AS A USEFUL TOOL IN HER WORK TO GET JOBS DONE FASTER AND MAKE PEOPLE MORE EFFICIENT.
KAT CLOSE: “ESPECIALLY FOR THE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT SIDE OF THINGS… AND THAT WAS A BENEFIT. BUT I ALSO SAW HOW … ESPECIALLY WITH HOW A-I FIRST CAME ABOUT WHICH WAS THROUGH THE CREATIVE SIDE… WHICH WAS NOT EXPECTED AT ALL THE JUST MASS AMOUNT OF FEAR AND PARANOIA THAT CREATIVES WENT THROUGH WITHIN MY COMMUNITY AND ABROAD ABOUT ‘WE’RE IRRELEVANT LIKE WE MIGHT BE REPLACED IN THE SPAN OF A YEAR.’ AND SO AS SOMEBODY PURSUING A CAREER THAT MERGES BOTH THE CREATIVE SIDE AND THE TECHNICAL SIDE OF THINGS … IT WAS VERY CONFUSING TO NAVIGATE.”
CAROLINE PECORA: POE-JENSEN WAS ONE OF THOSE CREATIVES WHO FEARED THAT NEW A-I TOOLS WOULD OUST THEM FROM THEIR INDUSTRIES. HERE SHE IS:
MAXINE POE-JENSEN: “ I REMEMBER MY FRIEND HAD TO WRITE A SPEECH FOR OUR LIKE… HONOR SOCIETY INDUCTION. AND WE WERE LIKE… I WAS HELPING HIM WRITE IT. AND THEN HE SORT OF HE ASKED HIS CHAT-GPT FOR THREE DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF LIKE A SPEECH FOR THE HONOR SOCIETY… AND THEN HE SORT OF SYNTHESIZED THOSE THREE VERSIONS TOGETHER TO MAKE HIS OWN SPEECH.I REMEMBER LIKE SITTING THERE BEING KIND OF SCARED BECAUSE LIKE … I REALLY LIKE WRITING AND I THINK THAT’S LIKE ONE OF MY STRENGTHS AND I WAS LIKE … THIS THING IS SO MUCH MORE EFFICIENT AND OBVIOUSLY FASTER BECAUSE IT LIKE EDITS EVERYTHING. SO I WAS DEFINITELY A LITTLE SCARED.”
CAROLINE PECORA: POE-JENSEN ADDED THAT MANY EARLY PUBLISHING INTERNSHIPS FOCUS ON COPY EDITING … PROVIDING SUMMARIES OF ARTICLES AND FICTION WORK … AND OTHER SKILLS A-I CAN QUICKLY ACCOMPLISH.
MAXINE POE-JENSEN: “AND I WAS JUST LIKE ‘THAT’S SOMETHING THAT COULD BE DONE BY A-I SO MUCH … YOU KNOW… MORE EFFICIENT THAN A HUMAN.’ SO LIKE … LOOKING AT THOSE INTERNSHIPS FOR LIKE CAREER GOALS … AND THEN SEEING STUFF THAT A-I COULD DO WITH WAS LIKE … SORT OF JARRING TO ME. SO I THINK DEFINITELY COMPETING IN TERMS OF THE WORKFORCE. ”
CAROLINE PECORA: POE-JENSEN FEELS SHE WILL BE COMPETING WITH A-I … WHICH IS INCREASINGLY COMMON. ACCORDING TO A REPORT BY EXPERIENCE MANAGEMENT COMPANY MOMENTIVE … 61 PERCENT OF STUDENTS EXPRESSED CONCERN ABOUT A-I REPLACING THE SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE THEY LEARN IN COLLEGE HALF OF THOSE SURVEYED ALSO EXPECT A-I TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF JOB OPPORTUNITIES THEY HAVE AFTER COLLEGE.
MAXINE POE-JENSEN: “I THINK THERE’S A REAL DANGER OF ESPECIALLY ARTS AND HUMANITIES JOBS AND EDUCATION BECOMING OBSOLETE. SO YEAH… IT MAKES ME NERVOUS.”
CAROLINE PECORA: SO HOW CAN FRESHLY GRADUATED STUDENTS STAY AHEAD OF THE RISING TIDE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE? ALLYNN POWELL … THE DIRECTOR OF THIS UNIVERSITY’S CAREER CENTER… BELIEVES THERE ARE CORE SKILLS A-I WON’T BE ABLE TO REPLACE IN EVERY INDUSTRY. THINGS LIKE CRITICAL THINKING… PROBLEM SOLVING AND TEAMWORK ARE ETERNAL IN THE WORKFORCE.
WHEN IT COMES TO A-I… POWELL MAKES A NOTE THAT IT’S IMPORTANT FOR STUDENTS TO UNDERSTAND HOW A-I IMPACTS THEIR CHOSEN INDUSTRIES AND MAKE IT WORK TO THEIR BENEFIT.
ALLYNN POWELL: “KNOWING THAT BEING ABLE TO WALK IN AND LEVERAGE THAT TO THE BENEFIT OF WHATEVER THE MISSION MIGHT BE TO YOUR ORGANIZATION … I THINK ARE WAYS THAT STUDENTS CAN USE YOU KNOW… AGAIN… WHAT IS A VALID HESITANCY AND OR CONCERN TO THEIR ADVANTAGE. I DON’T THINK IT’S GOING AWAY … RIGHT? AND SO I DON’T WANT THE CONCERN TO PARALYZE OUR STUDENTS. AND I THINK WE CAN CONTINUE TO WORK ALONGSIDE THEM TO PREPARE THEM TO KNOW WHAT IT IS AND HOW BEST TO POSITION THEMSELVES TO UTILIZE IT TO THEIR ADVANTAGE MOVING FORWARD.”
CAROLINE PECORA: CLOSE … THE UNIVERSITY ALUM … ECHOED THAT BECOMING FAMILIAR WITH USING A-I AS A TOOL KEEPS STUDENTS COMPETITIVE IN THE WORKFORCE.
KAT CLOSE: “IF I DON’T LEARN THE LATEST AND GREATEST A-I TOOLS … THAT IS A THREAT TO MY PROFESSION… BECAUSE I BECOME LESS COMPETITIVE COMPARED TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE STAYING ON TOP OF THOSE TOOLS. AND BECAUSE THEY WILL LIKELY HAVE A QUICKER… MORE EFFICIENT OUTPUT OF WORK AND A HIGHER QUALITY OF WORK POTENTIALLY DEPENDING ON YOU KNOW HOW THEY CHOOSE TO USE THE TOOL. COMPANIES MAY GO FOR THEM … RIGHT? … OVER ME. SO THAT’S WHY I HAVE TO AS A PROFESSIONAL STAY ON TOP OF THESE TOOLS.”
CAROLINE PECORA: EVEN AS STUDENTS WORK TO STAY ON TOP OF THE CHANGING A-I LANDSCAPE … THE FUTURE IS STILL UNCERTAIN. AND WITH THAT UNCERTAINTY … THERE ARE A WIDE RANGE OF OPINIONS ON HOW THE TOOL WILL IMPACT THE WORKFORCE.
ON ONE HAND… GOLDSTEIN BELIEVES THAT WHILE A-I WON’T OUTRIGHT REPLACE JOBS ANY TIME SOON … ITS EFFICIENCY IN DOCUMENT READING AND COMPUTERIZED TASKS CAN REDUCE JOBS THAT REQUIRE THOSE SKILL SETS.
TOM GOLDSTEIN: A-I CAN MAKE PEOPLE MORE EFFICIENT IN THEIR PROFESSIONS … AND THAT MIGHT REDUCE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT WE NEED. SO WHILE AN A-I CHATBOT IS NOT GOING TO COMPLETELY REPLACE THE NEED FOR ATTORNEYS ANYTIME SOON … WHAT A CHATBOT COULD DO IS IT COULD DO DOCUMENT REVIEW VERY EFFECTIVELY. SO EFFECTIVELY…IN FACT… THAT IT MIGHT SERIOUSLY REDUCE THE NUMBER OF ATTORNEYS THAT YOU NEED TO WORK ON A CASE IF DOCUMENT REVIEW IS REQUIRED … RIGHT?
CAROLINE PECORA: BUT FOR POE-JENSEN … A-I CAN’T REPLACE THE ONE THING HUMANS HAVE A MONOPOLY ON …
MAXINE POE-JENSEN: “I THINK IT’S VERY EASY TO WANT TO USE GENERATIVE A-I TO COME UP WITH NEW IDEAS. BUT LIKE…I JUST THINK A LOT OF TIMES… IT CAN’T REPLICATE WHAT THE HUMAN MIND CAN DO. LIKE WHEN I WRITE POETRY OR FICTION … A LOT OF IT IS JUST NOT STRUCTURED. IT’S NOT … YOU KNOW … THOUGHT OUT. IT DOESN’T FOLLOW A RUBRIC. AND I THINK WHEN YOU HAVE GENERATIVE A-I … IT TENDS TO PARE THINGS DOWN … AND IT’S ALWAYS LOOKING FOR … YOU KNOW … A SET OF RULES THAT I CAN FOLLOW. AND I THINK SOME OF MY FAVORITE STORIES AND POEMS AND CREATIVE WORK ARE NOT CONVENTIONAL IN THAT THEY DON’T FOLLOW A TEMPO AND THEY DON’T FOLLOW A PLOT STRUCTURE. AND IT’S JUST SOMETHING THAT WOULDN’T COME NATURALLY TO A-I … I GUESS.”
CAROLINE PECORA: THIS HAS BEEN ANOTHER EPISODE OF OFFBEAT… A PODCAST FROM THE DIAMONDBACK. THIS EPISODE HAS BEEN REPORTED AND HOSTED BY ME: CAROLINE PECORA. THE SCRIPT WAS WRITTEN BY EDITORS AARON WRIGHT AND FATIMA YAZDI. FOLLOW OFFBEAT ON TWITTER AT @DBKOFFBEAT AND FOLLOW THE DIAMONDBACK ON TWITTER AND INSTAGRAM @THEDBK. YOU CAN FIND A TRANSCRIPT OF THIS EPISODE AT DBKNEWS.COM. IF YOU LIKED THIS EPISODE … TELL YOUR FRIENDS. TAKE CARE.
