The higher education sector exists in a permanent state of flux. Things are constantly changing. Priorities. Curriculums. Offerings.
And so they should. After all, higher ed should reflect the world around it, which continues to change at an ever-increasing rate. New technologies (specifically, AI) have dramatically altered the way we do…well, a lot of things.
From a business perspective: how we work will never stay the same. The automation of tasks previously carried manually, alongside resources that can make sense of large quantities of data at a rate that humans simply cannot match, has dramatically altered some of the skills needed to succeed in today’s workplace. And that, in turn, has implications for educators.
New skills demand new lessons
Higher ed institutions have been under immense pressure to bridge the evolving skills gap in the wake of the latest technological revolution. We’ve witnessed an explosion in the availability of AI-, Big Data Analytics- and Machine Learning-focused programmes in recent years – all to meet the demand from industry for more digitally-savvy professionals.
One institution that stands out for this is Trinity Business School:
“Trinity Business School recognises the transformative impact of AI and has adopted an adaptive philosophy to integrate AI literacy into our curriculum,” said Kisito Nzembayie, Director of MSc in Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Trinity, in conversation with EFMD earlier this year.
Trinity has unveiled a raft of changes, additions and updates to its offering – from the MBA suite to executive education – and is even proposing and incentivising staff upskill to some degree in generative AI.
But Trinity isn’t alone – institutions all over the globe are committing to a more digitally-intensive future.
In a contribution for the AACSB, Alain Goudey, Associate Dean for Digital at NEOMA Business School, captured the sentiment of business schools everywhere when it comes to AI:
“Whether from a desire to experiment or out of necessity, business schools worldwide are increasingly integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI (GenAI) skills into their curricula… This reality calls for a broader movement in higher education—and at business schools, specifically—to embrace GenAI as a strategic imperative.”
It’s not just about what institutions teach, it’s how
The rise of AI- and other tech-inspired programmes reflects an awareness of the need for new content. But institutions aren’t just re-thinking what they teach, but also how they do it.
Empowered by these new technologies, and galvanised by a changing world, schools are innovating to improve the teaching process.
According to Monica Arés, Director of the IDEA Lab at Imperial College Business School, new technologies can enable educators to, among other things, create a learning process that is active, customised and engaging.
“Artificial intelligence and extended reality can create new ways of learning that are more engaging, personalised and human-centric. By using these technologies, we can solve some of the biggest challenges in education,” she notes in a contribution to Imperial’s IB Knowledge platform.
Arés’ awareness of the need for new ways of teaching students finds company in that of Saïd Business School’s Ludovic Phallippou, Professor of Financial Economics, who recently unveiled the world's first cinematised educational case study to cater to younger generations’ preferences for visual learning.
Where next?
Amongst such widespread change, it’s hard to imagine what the future might look like for higher education. But one thing’s certain: the future will be technology-driven.
Future-proof skills and a customised learning process. These are just two features that while, today, constitute unique selling points for the particularly digitally-enhanced institutions, will become the new benchmark standard for education in the near future.
For Estefania Santacreu-Vasut, Associate Dean of Pedagogy at ESSEC Business School, in a world where, as she puts it, “information seems to be a click away” combining personalised learning with rich pedagogical experiences will be “the added value of universities and business schools”, as she told QS.
She’s right. Higher education institutions find themselves in the awkward position where, one the one hand, thanks to technology, information has never been more readily-available to all, and on the other – also thanks to technology – student standards and expectations are only getting higher.
They need to be ready for this.
Fortunately, there are few institutions within the international higher education space that have yet to commit, at least in part, to a more technologically-advanced future, and all the things that come with it. No, as the future looks all the more digital, schools everywhere are adapting accordingly. And they’ll need to continue to adapt – for this isn’t a one-time thing.
If the past couple of years have taught us anything, it’s that change is the only constant.
For PR support for your institution in a digitally-intensive world, contact BlueSky Education today.
Author: Jonny StoneJonny delivers impactful PR results using an evolving network of essential media contacts, from national newspapers like Forbes, The Guardian, the Financial Times and The Telegraph, to specific trade editors such as PIE News, QS Top Universities, We Are The City and University World News. He is committed to helping more ambitious institutions reach international media goals.
