AI fears are prompting Gen Z to drop out of college, shift to blue-collar industries: survey

Gen Z is rethinking college and rushing into blue-collar work as fears mount that artificial intelligence will wipe out white-collar jobs — with nearly three out of five young adults now viewing AI as a threat to their careers, according to a recent Harvard survey.Early evidence suggests those fears may not be unfounded as employment for workers ages 22 to 25 in AI-exposed roles has already fallen 16% relative to less-exposed jobs, Stanford research shows.Young workers aren’t waiting for the full impact to play out.A recent Harvard Kennedy School survey of 2,040 Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 found 59% consider AI “a threat to their job prospects.” In comparison, 48% consider outsourcing a threat and 31%, immigration.Across the country, students are ditching traditional white-collar paths, dropping out of degree programs or changing majors in favor of hands-on trades and other work they see as harder for AI to replace.That shift is already showing up in the classroom as enrollment in vocational-focused community colleges has surged nearly 20% since 2020, according to National Student Clearinghouse data.With automation becoming increasingly widespread, more young Americans are now betting on careers in fields like construction, firefighting and electrical work.Jackson Curtis, a 28-year-old insurance underwriting assistant outside Tacoma, Wash., is already making the leap.After more than three years in the field, he’s now pursuing a career as a firefighter over fears AI could replace much of his office work.“Even if they can come up with a way to utilize AI to fight fires, people are always going to want that empathy from an actual human who actually cares during a moment of crisis,” Curtis told the Wall Street Journal.Others are abandoning white-collar tracks before they even begin in earnest.Ryder Paredes, 22, dropped out of a computer science program and enrolled in trade school to become an electrician after watching AI rapidly improve....