How Students Can AI-Proof Their Careers

The current generation of college students is facing a challenge that those who came before never had to worry about: They’ll be competing with AI for jobs.

What can they do to get ready?

After all, artificial intelligence is likely to eliminate at least some jobs that formerly served as first rungs on career ladders. “We have to accept and embrace the idea that in fact with AI we are going to have jobs that are going to be eliminated and jobs that are going to be created, and we don’t know which ones,” says Joseph E. Aoun , president of Northeastern University.

That uncertainty leaves today’s college students struggling to prepare for a workplace that is changing faster than ever. We asked a range of career counselors and employers how they would suggest students AI-proof their careers. One consensus: It’s important to master skills not easily matched by machines, such as human-style communications and the ability to understand and work smoothly with people who have different perspectives and personalities.

“In many ways the human skills are going to be more fundamental than they are now,” as machines take over some routine tasks, Aoun says.

A survey of 255 employers by the National Association of Colleges and Employers last year found that the three top “competencies” they sought in job candidates were communication, teamwork and critical thinking.

Communication and teamwork rely on emotional intelligence, or EQ. “AI has probably won the IQ battle,” says Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic , chief innovation officer at Manpower Group and professor of business psychology at Columbia University, “but the EQ battle is up for grabs.”

Of course, that doesn’t mean students shouldn’t master AI. Skill in using AI as a productivity-enhancing tool can give them an edge over older workers who haven’t mastered ChatGPT and other AI programs.

But knowing how to use AI effectively isn’t enough. Here are some suggestions from the experts on how students—or really anybody—can reduce the risk they will eventually be replaced by AI.

Cultivate your ability to work with other people, including jerks

AI can write computer code, improve grammar and solve math problems, but so far it lacks the ability to mediate squabbles among colleagues, charm potential clients over cocktails or soothe angry customers. So developing those skills may be one of a job applicant’s best selling points.

Anything that requires talking and cooperating with strangers is helpful. That includes volunteering in a nursing home or an after-school youth program, or leading an on-campus club or sport. Jobs that require dealing directly with lots of other people, including jerks, are an educational opportunity. “If you’re a waiter you will understand human beings better,” says Chamorro-Premuzic.

Go wide and avoid hyper-specialisation

Focusing too heavily on one type of expertise could be a mistake if, as expected, AI eliminates lots of jobs in some specialties. It isn’t a risk only for technology fields like computer science; other fields such as accounting and finance are also being transformed by AI.

Instead, experts recommend having a portfolio of skills.

“If you have one skill, you compete with the masses that have that same one skill,” says Anna Esaki-Smith , author of “Make College Your Superpower.” In contrast, she says, “Should you stack on another skill, you become qualified for a wider range of opportunities.”

That could mean adding a minor or two to a major or going for a double major. It also could involve a strategic selection of electives. D. Raja , chief executive of CEI, a Pittsburgh information-technology consulting firm, says he increasingly looks for job candidates who have both technical skills and a grounding in business, enabling them to understand clients’ needs. An M.B.A. stacked atop a computer-science degree is one good strategy, he says.

Though a range of skills and knowledge is an advantage, it’s still important to develop deep expertise in at least one or two areas. “AI has disrupted superficial expertise,” Chamorro-Premuzic says. In other words, you have to know more than generative AI programs can spit out in a minute or two.

Show you can organise a big project and get it done

If AI will do at least some of the grunt work, people will still be needed to devise strategies and carry out complicated projects. Machines do pieces of work, but “we still need big-picture humans to put it all together,” says John Behrens , director of the technology and digital studies program at the University of Notre Dame.

To help students learn how to manage complexity, many universities require them to complete a capstone project before graduation. Those can include primary research, ambitious artworks or community-service projects.

Vanderbilt University calls such projects “immersion.” For his Vanderbilt project, Logan Glazier is converting an old school bus, once consigned to the junkyard, into an RV with solar panels mounted on the roof to power his refrigerator and other appliances.

He expects to finish the project within a few months, before graduating next spring with a degree in civil engineering. Glazier had to sell his idea to university administrators, persuade them to give him space to work on the bus, develop a plan and find materials. He watched dozens of YouTube videos and consulted with Vanderbilt professors.

He recalls the reaction he got from people at the engineering consulting firm HNTB when they heard about the project: “Wow, that’s really cool!” He got an HNTB internship in 2023 and recently accepted a full-time job at the firm starting in May, after his graduation.

Be open to new experiences

As AI and other technological changes make career paths less predictable, adaptability will be an advantage. “We don’t know what the world is going to be like in five years or 10 years,” says Behrens.

Students can develop their adaptability by seeking out new experiences, such as studying abroad or taking unconventional courses. At Carnegie Mellon University, renowned for computer science and robotics, one of the most popular electives is “Acting for Non-Majors,” offered by the Pittsburgh school’s drama department. Students have long taken the course, but now demand has soared as students see it as a plus in the job market, forcing them to shed their inhibitions and engage with other people in unscripted ways.

This year, to accommodate demand, CMU quadrupled the capacity of the course.

“It’s exhilarating,” says Emily Ma , a math major. “Acting forces you to step outside your comfort zone.” That’s particularly important for a generation of young people who were isolated during the Covid-19 pandemic and spent far more time staring at screens than they did engaging directly with people.

Be a moderate misfit

Amid all the changes AI is bringing, companies want fresh thinking. So one route to success is to be a “moderate misfit,” unhappy with the status quo and ready to innovate, says Chamorro-Premuzic. By moderate, he means that “you fit in well enough and work well with others but are not so bland and risk-averse as to lose the desire for change and progress.”

Chamorro-Premuzic advises young people not to seek employers that fit perfectly with their values but rather to “look for places they like but which they also dream of transforming and improving.”

AI is like a B+ student and can tell you what the average person would say, says Matthew Rascoff , vice provost for digital education at Stanford University. A+ work, he says, is the product of an individual brain with a distinctive voice. So he urges students to develop their own voices and identities. “The more you outsource” to AI, he says, “the less you are developing that muscle.”

Reporting season has once again reminded investors that a strong profit does not guarantee a rising share price, and a large loss does not always trigger a sell-off. What matters most is how each result compares with expectations and, increasingly, what management says about the year ahead. During the August 2026 season, companies offering credible turnarounds or unexpectedly strong guidance were rewarded handsomely, while those flagging weaker margins, slowing demand or greater uncertainty were punished.

The following ranking draws on Morningstar’s review of 164 ASX-listed companies and measures each company’s share-price movement on the day it reported. This captures the market’s immediate response to the earnings announcement, before subsequent economic developments, dividends and company-specific news cloud the picture. Here are the five biggest winners, and the five hardest-hit losers, of the season so far.

The five winners

1. Bapcor (ASX:BAP): +41.0%

Bapcor delivered reporting season’s largest relief rally after presenting early evidence that its troubled automotive-parts business was stabilising. Although underlying revenue fell 1.8% to $1.92 billion and underlying NPAT collapsed 85% to $10.8 million, underlying EBITDA of $152.5 million exceeded guidance.

More importantly, working-capital initiatives released $68.5 million in the second half, lifting cash conversion to 109.4% and reducing net debt by 63% to $135 million. The statutory loss was $431.6 million, largely because of non-cash impairments. Investors focused on improving operational momentum, stronger liquidity and management’s expectation of modest FY27 revenue growth.

2. Zip Co (ASX:ZIP): +18.2%

Zip comfortably surpassed its FY26 targets, sending the buy-now-pay-later provider’s shares sharply higher. Transaction volume rose 23% to $16.7 billion, while cash earnings before tax, depreciation and amortisation jumped 58% to a record $268.9 million. Statutory profit climbed 46% to $116.4 million, and the cash operating margin expanded by 4.2 percentage points to 20%.

The strongest signal was guidance for FY27 cash earnings of $340 million—around 26% growth and above analysts’ forecasts. US transaction volume increased 42.5% and now represents three-quarters of group volume, offsetting weaker customer activity in Australia.

3. CSL (ASX:CSL): +17.3%

CSL’s result was hardly spectacular in isolation, but it cleared a market bar that had fallen dramatically following earlier downgrades and restructuring announcements. Underlying NPATA was US$3.1 billion, down 2% in constant-currency terms, while operating cash flow reached US$3.51 billion.

CSL maintained its full-year dividend at US$2.92 per share and completed a A$1 billion buyback. The real catalyst was FY27 guidance for approximately 5% underlying profit growth, compared with market expectations closer to 2%. After an extended period of earnings disappointments, investors interpreted the outlook as evidence that CSL’s core plasma business was approaching a sustainable recovery.

4. Judo Capital (ASX:JDO): +16.9%

Judo Capital demonstrated strong operating leverage as its specialist business-lending franchise expanded. Full-year profit before tax rose 34% to $168.1 million, while pre-provision profit increased 42%. Gross loans and advances grew 18% to $14.7 billion, reaching the top of the bank’s guidance range and comfortably exceeding broader system growth.

Deposits increased 24% to $12.2 billion, return on equity improved by 1.1 percentage points to 6.4%, and earnings per share rose 29% to 9.9 cents. Reaffirmation of the FY27 outlook gave investors confidence that loan growth could continue without sacrificing margins or credit quality.

5. Super Retail Group (ASX:SUL): +15.8%

The owner of Supercheap Auto, rebel, BCF and Macpac reported record sales of $4.2 billion, up 3.2%, despite cautious discretionary spending. Profitability went backwards: normalised profit before tax fell 7% to $306 million and normalised NPAT declined 2.8% to $226 million as transformation spending weighed on margins. Nevertheless, the result exceeded subdued expectations, online sales grew 5.3% and membership across the group’s loyalty programs reached 13.1 million. Investors were also encouraged by positive early FY27 trading, stable gross margins and continued market-share gains. A fully franked 33-cent final dividend added to the appeal.

The five losers

1. Hansen Technologies (ASX:HSN): –21.2%

Hansen’s historic result met expectations, but investors recoiled from its outlook. The utility and communications software provider achieved an underlying EBITDA margin of 31%, exceeding its 30% target, while generating strong cash flow. However, management designated FY27 an “investment and transition year”, signalling a roughly five-percentage-point margin contraction as spending on products, sales capabilities and organisational changes increased.

Revenue had already been broadly flat, leaving investors concerned that the investment program would depress earnings before new growth appeared. Leadership changes, including the chief executive’s departure, added uncertainty. Management expects revenue growth and margins above 30% to return in FY28, but the market was unwilling to wait.

2. Life360 (ASX:360): –19.4%

Life360’s headline growth was impressive: quarterly revenue rose 38% to US$159 million, subscription revenue increased 31%, and adjusted EBITDA climbed 53% to US$31.1 million. Monthly active users reached 102.4 million and paying circles grew 27% to 3.2 million. The sell-off reflected expectations rather than a collapsing business.

Net income fell 18%, the net margin contracted from 6% to 3%, hardware shipments dropped 18%, and full-year EBITDA guidance was merely maintained. After a strong valuation run, investors wanted a larger upgrade and clearer evidence that heavy investment in advertising, international expansion and artificial intelligence would generate additional earnings.

3. PEXA Group (ASX:PXA): –17.0%

PEXA reported a 7% increase in continuing-operations revenue and 12% EBITDA growth to $152 million, accompanied by a two-percentage-point margin expansion. Free cash flow increased 39%, suggesting the core Australian electronic-conveyancing platform remained highly profitable. Investors instead concentrated on management’s warning that property-transfer volumes could decline, alongside regulatory uncertainty surrounding the fees PEXA can charge.

The company is also continuing to invest heavily in its loss-making international expansion. Morningstar considered the market reaction excessive, arguing that structural transfer-volume assumptions had not materially changed, but the combination of softer near-term activity and regulatory risk overwhelmed the respectable headline numbers.

4. SEEK (ASX:SEK): –14.3%

SEEK produced solid FY26 figures, including 10% revenue growth to $1.20 billion, a 15% rise in EBITDA and 28% growth in adjusted earnings per share. It also lifted its fully franked annual dividend by 13% to a record 52 cents. Those achievements were overshadowed by falling paid job-ad volumes and cautious FY27 assumptions.

The statutory accounts included a $201 million loss from the SEEK Growth Fund and $377 million of significant items, making the headline result considerably less attractive. Investors were particularly concerned that economic weakness could limit volumes while the company continued investing in platform integration and artificial-intelligence products.

5. JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH): –12.3%

JB Hi-Fi’s full-year result was broadly respectable, with group sales rising 5% to $11.1 billion and underlying earnings per share increasing 6% to $4.48. The damage came from its current-trading update. Australian sales were almost flat during the June quarter and deteriorated further in July, while earnings in the core Australian electronics business fell 3.6%.

Housing-related categories were particularly weak as higher living costs and interest rates constrained household budgets. With JB Hi-Fi entering the season on a demanding valuation, an in-line historic result was not sufficient: the loss of sales momentum prompted investors to rapidly reduce their expectations for FY27.

Overall, the season showed that share prices react less to whether profits rose or fell than to the gap between results and expectations. Bapcor was rewarded for being less troubled than feared, while several fundamentally profitable companies were punished because their outlooks failed to justify elevated valuations.