University education must embrace AI, says Professor Bas Donkers

Freeze response is counterproductive

Although recent research suggests that the economic impact of AI on national prosperity appears limited, the consequences for the labour market are significant, Donkers writes. Especially when AI replaces human labour instead of supporting it, the tasks carried out by employees change drastically. Students must therefore be prepared for a future in which AI is a natural part of their work.

Yet many universities, he argues, respond with a ‘freeze reaction’: stricter rules are introduced, assignments are replaced by exams, and efforts are made to discourage the use of AI. In doing so, educational institutions short-change both themselves and their students, Donkers believes. ‘Assignments prepare students better for the labour market than exams, precisely because they are practice-oriented and often carried out in groups.’

Human skills become more important as AI takes over analytical work

Donkers argues that AI proficiency should be explicitly included in programme learning objectives. Students need to learn which questions to ask, how to formulate an effective prompt, and above all how to critically assess AI outputs. In addition, human skills such as leadership, persuasiveness and perseverance become even more important now that AI partly automates knowledge and analytical work.

There are already positive examples, Donkers emphasises in the ESB article. Some institutions are experimenting with subject-specific chatbots or allow students to use AI to summarise insights. Yet reluctance remains widespread. ‘For many lecturers, AI is frightening,’ he acknowledges. But unfamiliarity should not lead to inaction: ‘We owe it to our students to teach them these skills.’

Donkers concludes with a clear message: educational institutions should no longer try to keep AI out of the classroom, but instead use it to better equip students for a labour market in which AI is indispensable.