In a conversation two years ago, Yu Minhong asked Li Kaifu, "How long will it take for artificial intelligence to achieve breakthrough development?" Li estimated that it would take about 15 to 20 years.
However, in less than two years, the emergence of ChatGPT and the rapid development of "big data models+artificial intelligence" technology have triggered significant changes in global knowledge exploration, work methods, and other fields.
"The current era, technological progress, and world changes have brought unprecedented challenges to higher education and student employment." On March 21, Yu Minhong, founder of New Oriental (NYSE: EDU), admitted at the "2024 Forum on Higher Education and Employment Development" that compared to the past, the employment situation faced by the current generation during their university years is much more severe.
In his view, in the past, technological development and social change were relatively slow, and the reform and opening up brought about a large number of job positions. Moreover, the group of college students was relatively small, and a university degree was sufficient to ensure finding a high-quality job.
However, even with a doctoral degree nowadays, college students may not easily find satisfactory jobs. Although China's living standards have improved, job opportunities have increased, international exchanges have strengthened, and technological capabilities have significantly improved, individual college students have encountered greater difficulties in the job search process.
"Since the big model came out, the number of secretaries under my command who helped with Chinese English translation has immediately decreased from five to two," Yu Minhong said, citing his own example.
In the fiercely competitive environment, whether the curriculum system of university education meets market demand and the degree of integration of industry, academia, and research have become issues that must be deeply explored and solved at present.
Yu Minhong believes that solving the problem of future employment channels for college students needs to start from four dimensions: the country, universities, individuals, and society:
Firstly, the guiding ideology and policies of the country in the development of higher education should be forward-looking to meet the requirements of the times, especially in China where policy orientation plays a crucial leading role in the development of higher education. The state needs to provide advanced guidance on the development of universities, departmental settings, and curriculum in higher education management to ensure that educational content is closely linked to social development.
Secondly, there is a disconnect between the current curriculum system and the times in some universities, which is manifested in various aspects such as teaching content, teaching methods, experimental methods, and even assessment methods. After obtaining a graduation diploma, college graduates often have a gap between their knowledge and the skills they need for job hunting.
For example, when New Oriental recruits a large number of undergraduate and graduate graduates, it usually requires an additional three to six months of retraining to meet job requirements.
For most college students who are about to enter the workforce, higher education should focus on cultivating two abilities to ensure that they can smoothly connect with the demands of the job market after graduation.
One is to cultivate universal abilities, mainly including cognitive ability, judgment ability, etc., which can be achieved through general education courses to achieve interdisciplinary learning and enhance the overall understanding and correct judgment of the world's development of college students. Universities should pay attention to whether college students form a correct understanding, perspective, and concept of society and the world upon graduation, which is crucial for their future life trajectory.
The second is to enhance the application ability of college students. University education should not only focus on the teaching of theoretical knowledge, but also pay attention to the practical application ability of knowledge, keep up with the development of the times, such as introducing emerging technology courses such as big data models, promoting the compatibility of humanities and sciences, strengthening the combination of theory and practice, cultivating the comprehensive application ability of college students to adapt to social development, and reducing the risk of unemployment for graduates upon graduation.
From a personal perspective, college students should not passively wait, but actively improve themselves and strive for progress. They should not be satisfied with just obtaining a degree certificate through exams, but should strive to exercise various skills and prepare for future employment.
Finally, at the social level, enterprises should actively participate in the integration of industry, education, and research, providing more opportunities for Chinese university students to engage in practical operations and development of enterprises, such as internships, visits to enterprises, and listening to entrepreneurs share their experiences. This type of practical activity is of great significance for college students to understand the real workplace and practical knowledge.