Gender balance in computer science and engineering is improving at elite universities but getting worse elsewhere - Joseph Cimpian, the Conversation

The share of computer science and engineering degrees going to women has increased at the most selective American universities over the past 20 years and is approaching gender parity, while the proportion has declined at less selective schools. Those are the main findings of a study my colleague and I recently published in the journal Science. Jo R. King and I analyzed over 34 million bachelor’s degrees awarded by nearly 1,600 American universities from 2002 to 2022 – data covering almost all bachelors-degree-granting institutions in the U.S. We wanted to identify which factors best predict parity among men and women in physics, engineering and computer science majors.

https://theconversation.com/gender-balance-in-computer-science-and-engineering-is-improving-at-elite-universities-but-getting-worse-elsewhere-244365

Online Degrees Out of Reach - Liam Knox, Inside Higher Ed

Fewer than half of students at the largest nonprofit online institutions earn a degree after eight years. Is it an unfortunate reality or a cry for accountability? Demand for remote degree programs has surged in the past decade, and especially since the COVID-19 pandemic normalized the online classroom. But for students in many exclusively online programs, eight-year completion rates often fall below 50 percent, according to data on outcome measures from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. At Southern New Hampshire University, one of the largest and oldest online institutions in the country, only 36 percent of students who enrolled in 2015 graduated in eight years. At Grand Canyon University, four times as many students attend online as in person—100,000 compared to 25,000 at the Phoenix campus this fall. But only 46 percent of the nearly 26,000 online and in-person students who enrolled in 2015 had earned a degree by 2023, according to IPEDS data.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-innovation/teaching-learning/2025/01/08/large-online-colleges-students-struggle-earn

Indispensable Instructional Designers at Professional Schools - Patricia Baia, Faculty Focus

IDs can bring transformative benefits to professional schools (programs offering terminal degrees for a specific profession) and support faculty in their endeavors to innovate and engage students. Professional schools, such as pharmacy, medical, dental, law, etc., should consider incorporating instructional designers into their academic teams to boost the quality of education and to help reshape what faculty are doing. Professional schools cater to a diverse student body with varying learning preferences, needs, and accrediting bodies to answer to (Coble, 2015). These adult learners thrive in multimodal contexts which can look like traditional lecture-based settings, hands-on experiential learning, or online coursework. Most importantly, adults need consistency, organization, transparency, and a community (Sockalingam, 2012 & Binder, 2023). Instructional designers are experts who use their flexibility, knowledge, and skills in theory and practice to help faculty adapt to new ways of educating students (Pollard & Kumar, 2022).

https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/course-design-ideas/indispensable-instructional-designers-at-professional-schools/

How to be a better leader in 2025 - Arne Gast, McKinsey

If you want to step into 2025 as the leader you aspire to be, start by taking an honest look at your current approach. Are you prioritizing strategically? Are you maximizing your time and energy? Are you cultivating a resilient team? As McKinsey's Arne Gast writes, "Leaders who continually upgrade their personal operating model report being more productive, working more consciously, and driving change more effectively." Check out these insights to learn how to proactively adapt and refine your personal approach to work and life to make 2025 your most successful year yet.

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/themes/how-to-be-a-better-leader-in-2025

The AI skills you’ll need for 2025: IBM SkillsBuild education forecast - IBM

This trend is common across industries. A new report from IBM reveals that 87% of executives expect jobs to be augmented rather than replaced by generative AI. As for the human element, the challenge today is that about half (47%) of executives say their people lack the knowledge and skills to effectively implement and scale AI across the enterprise. The answer is that we need to invest in education and upskilling to fully reap the benefits of AI. People are crucial to this effort. With that in mind, here are IBM’s three predictions for education in 2025, and the skills we need to build now to prepare.

https://www.ibm.com/think/insights/ai-skills-you-need-for-2025

Why more colleges are embracing AI offerings - Lilah Burke, Higher Ed Dive

Ever since the public release of ChatGPT in November 2022, artificial intelligence has dominated conversations related to higher education and the future of work in the U.S. Now, some colleges are investing significantly in AI-related programs, from specific degrees to integrating AI literacy into other disciplines.  They are doing so for several reasons. Those include responding to predictions that the American workforce will rely on AI much more in the future. For students who would like to work with the development and science of AI, that can mean jobs — some of which are fairly high-paying. For students in other disciplines, that could mean they need to demonstrate AI-related knowledge or competency to land jobs. 

https://www.highereddive.com/news/colleges-artificial-intelligence-programs-investments/736196/

What might happen if the Education Department were closed? - Jill Barshay, et al; Hechinger Report

The mere specter of shuttering an agency that commands more than $200 billion has led parents, students, teachers, policy experts and politicians to wonder about (and in some cases plan for) the possible effects on their children and communities. Collectively, state and local governments spend far more on education than the federal government does. With federal dollars connected to many rules about how that money can be spent, however, the Education Department does play a significant role in how schools and colleges operate. Deleting the agency would not undo federal law providing money for students in rural places, with disabilities or who come from low-income families, but doling out that money and overseeing it could get messy. Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota recently introduced a bill to unwind the Education Department and spread its work across other federal agencies. The Hechinger Report tried to answer some of the questions raised by the possible dismantling of the department, consulting experts and advocates on student loans, special education, financial aid, school lunch and beyond. 

https://hechingerreport.org/what-might-happen-if-the-education-department-were-closed/

The end of in-person learning? Setting higher ed’s online goals for 2025 - Joe Ferraro, University Business

Higher education is undergoing a profound transformation, with online learning shifting from a temporary solution during the pandemic to a core component of many institutions’ long-term strategies. Students today read less than 15% of their assigned materials—a concerning trend that demands a new approach to how learning content is delivered and consumed. This shift raises a key question: Are traditional classrooms becoming obsolete, or can a blended model offer the best of both worlds while meeting students’ diverse needs? As institutions set ambitious online enrollment goals for 2025 and beyond, they must navigate a strategic path that preserves academic quality while driving scalable, financially sustainable programs.

https://universitybusiness.com/the-end-of-in-person-learning-setting-higher-eds-online-goals-for-2025/

Workforce Pell Grants will create high-paying jobs for more Americans - Linda McMahon, the Hill

America’s skilled workforce is unparalleled worldwide in technology, health care, trades and manufacturing. Our productivity per hour is consistently among the highest on Earth. That’s why the best path to a booming economy is to swell the ranks of our skilled workforce through education and training for more Americans. Congress should recognize the effort and commitment of American workers by funding the skills training and technical education most laborers rely on.

https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/4871602-skilled-workforce-investment/

A ‘hidden liability’: Colleges face up to $950B in capital needs, Moody’s says - Ben Unglesbee, Higher Ed Dive

As deferred maintenance at higher education institutions mounts, the growing backlog of needed capital investment presents a “hidden liability” for the sector, according to a Moody’s Ratings report this month. Collectively, the capital needs for facilities amount to between $750 billion and $950 billion over the next decade for colleges the agency rates, according to Moody’s. With fewer financial options, many colleges will resort to taking on new debt to finance investments, analysts said. Moody’s analysts expect infrastructure spending to pick up as colleges take on projects put off during the pandemic. But “few have the necessary resources and credit strength to sustain the higher amounts needed to tackle the full extent of their infrastructure needs,” they said.

https://www.highereddive.com/news/colleges-950B-capital-needs-facilities-deferred-maintenance-moodys/725282/

Dubay: Artificial Intelligence will boost productivity in 2025 - Rio Grande Guardian, Luis Montoya

Gains from artificial intelligence (AI) could cause productivity to soar above expectations next year. This is the prediction of Curtis Dubay, chief economist in the economic policy division of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “The surge in productivity in the last few years pre-dates the introduction of AI. While we have had years to integrate automation technology and are finally seeing the economic gains from that evolution, the economic efficiency brought on by AI hasn’t really kicked off yet,” Dubay said. “In 2025, we can expect businesses across the economy to better integrate AI into their processes. They are going to have no other choice because they will remain short of workers.”“AI will make their current workers more productive than they already are. This will boost growth even further and allow businesses to continue paying high wages, all while expanding their profit margins (as long as wage gain remains at current levels). That’s a win-win-win.”

https://riograndeguardian.com/dubay-artificial-intelligence-will-boost-productivity-in-2025/

Skipping College: The New Playbook for Successful Careers Without College - Thomas Frey, Future of Education

It has become increasingly evident that many young people are questioning the long-held belief that a traditional four-year college education is the best—or only—path to success. Rising tuition costs, mounting student debt, and uncertain job prospects after graduation have driven a growing skepticism toward the value of a college degree. At the same time, the rapid evolution of technology and shifting demands in the labor market have highlighted the need for skills-based learning and alternative career pathways. This change reflects a broader cultural and economic shift, with more individuals seeking practical, affordable, and efficient ways to enter the workforce. The future of career preparation is evolving, with a focus on building meaningful networks, acquiring hands-on skills, and leveraging personalized education options like trade schools, certifications, online courses, and mentorships. These alternatives not only align better with individual goals but also provide direct, tangible routes to professional success in an ever-changing world.The shifting attitudes toward higher education are being driven by a convergence of economic, professional, and cultural factors. Economically, the skyrocketing cost of college tuition and the resulting student loan crisis have left many young people questioning whether a degree is worth the financial burden. 

https://futuristspeaker.com/future-of-education/skipping-college-the-new-playbook-for-successful-careers-without-college/

Realizing AI Agent Transformation - Venture Beat

There’s no industry that won’t be disrupted by AI, and more specifically generative AI and agentic AI, in the coming months and years. Companies are understandably eager to realize the enormous promise of agentic AI, but they recognize the importance of mitigating risks to their brand and intellectual property. The present moment offers a critical opportunity to develop the necessary infrastructures, strategies, and solutions to empower the coming wave of citizen developers.

https://venturebeat.com/realizing-ai-transformation/

Beyond assistants: AI agents are transforming the paradigm - Venture Beat Staff

You can think of AI agents as tireless, specialized employees in an organization that are very specifically tailored to a task, and collaborate to solve business problems for you, Pandey adds. Adoption is currently picking up steam, and showing great results, Tim Tully, partner at Menlo Ventures, told VentureBeat. “I’m seeing a remarkable stream of customer success companies replacing and augmenting customer success teams with agents and helping them scale out,” Tully said. “It’s happening in marketing automation. It’s happening in code generation. I think you’re going to see agents spread across into other forms of software engineering as well. They’re incredibly pervasive as it stands today, but I think in the future agents are going to be used even more broadly across the enterprise.”

https://venturebeat.com/ai/beyond-assistants-ai-agents-are-transforming-the-paradigm/

Microsoft CEO’s Shocking Prediction: “Agents Will Replace ALL Software" - Matt Berman, YouTube

The video discusses Satya Nadella's (Microsoft CEO) prediction that software applications as we know them are going away in favor of agents. This is a huge statement that has vast implications for the future of software development. Specifically, Nadella argues that agents will eventually replace all business applications (including Excel). He believes that the future of software development will be based on agents interacting directly with databases. This means that there will be no need for the traditional application stack, which includes the user interface, business logic, and database. Instead, agents will be able to access and manipulate data directly, without the need for a human to write code. This has significant implications for both businesses and developers. Businesses will need to adapt to this new paradigm by investing in AI and training their employees to use agents. Developers will need to learn new skills and tools in order to create and manage agents. The video also discusses the potential benefits of this shift. Agents can automate many tasks that are currently done by humans, which can free up employees to focus on more strategic work. Additionally, agents can help businesses to make better decisions by providing them with access to more data and insights. (summary assisted by Gemini 1.5)

https://youtu.be/uGOLYz2pgr8?si=P3gYJFco6Q4MNu-E

Embracing the Future: New England College Takes the Lead in AI Education with New Online Master’s Program in Artificial Intelligence - New England College

In response to the growing global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) expertise, New England College (NEC) has launched a forward-thinking fully online Master of Science in AI degree program. This carefully designed program aims to equip professionals with the advanced skills needed to drive innovation. The new online program provides students with the technical expertise and real-world experience required to lead in AI development and applications. With AI revolutionizing industries from healthcare to finance and technology and a job growth of 32 percent over the past two years, the demand for skilled professionals in this field is at an all-time high. NEC’s AI master’s program offers students the opportunity to gain knowledge in AI, machine learning, data science and neural networks while allowing them to study on their own schedule from anywhere.

https://www.nec.edu/news/embracing-the-future-new-england-college-takes-the-lead-in-ai-education-with-new-online-masters-program-in-artificial-intelligence

Google releases model to rival OpenAI - Martin Crowley, AI Tool Report

Google launched Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking, its “most thoughtful model yet” that’s capable of reasoning its way through complex tasks, in areas like programming, math, and physics. A bit like OpenAI’s o1 can.  Powered by Google’s recently released LLM, Gemini Flash 2.0, Google’s reasoning model is supposedly quicker at responding than others (reasoning models take their time to ‘’think’’ and work their way through problems) and, although it appears to be similar in design to o1, it has one benefit that addresses a major concern with AI functioning as a ‘’black box, shrouded in mystery: It shows you what it’s “thinking”. It displays its workings out and explains why it’s come to the conclusion it has, offering users a more transparent experience and a clearer insight into how it works. 

https://www.aitoolreport.com/articles/google-releases-model-to-rival-openai

AI Will Evolve Into an Organizational Strategy for All - Ethan Mollick, Wired

This shift represents a fundamental change in how we structure and operate our businesses and institutions. While the integration of AI into our daily lives has happened very quickly (AI assistants are one of the fastest product adoptions in history), so far, organizations have seen limited benefits. But the coming year will mark a tipping point where AI moves from being a tool for individual productivity to a core component of organizational design and strategy. In 2025, forward-thinking companies will begin to reimagine their entire organizational structure, processes, and culture around the symbiotic relationship between human and artificial intelligence. This isn't just about automating tasks or augmenting human capabilities; it's about creating entirely new ways of working that leverage the unique strengths of both humans and AI. The key to unlocking the true power of LLMs lies in moving beyond individual use cases to organizational-level integration. 

https://www.wired.com/story/artificial-intelligence-work-organizational-strategy/

Apprenticeships are a trending alternative to college — but there’s a hitch - Jon Marcus, Hechinger Report

Apprenticeships combine paid on-the-job training with classroom time. Increasing their use has bipartisan support and was a rare subject of agreement between the presidential candidates in the election just ended. Apprenticeships have also benefited from growing public skepticism about the need for college: Only one in four adults now says having a four-year degree is extremely or very important to get a good job, the Pew Research Center finds, and nearly two-thirds of 14- to 18-year-olds say their ideal educations would involve learning skills on the job, as in apprenticeships, according to a survey by the ECMC Group. (ECMC Group is affiliated with the ECMC Foundation, one of many funders of The Hechinger Report.)

https://hechingerreport.org/apprenticeships-are-a-trending-alternative-to-college-but-theres-a-hitch/

Looking for internships? They are in short supply - Jon Marcus, Hechinger Report

Not only are there growing concerns about the supply of apprenticeships meeting demand; there’s a shortage of another important workforce training tool — internships. There were an estimated 5.7 million fewer high-quality internships last year than learners who wanted to intern, according to the Business-Higher Education Forum, or BHEF.Employers last year provided 2.5 million high-quality internships, compared to 8.2 million people who wanted one, the BHEF found. Another million internships that were offered fell short of high standards of quality and skills development, the organization said.

https://hechingerreport.org/looking-for-internships-they-are-in-short-supply/

AI-authored abstracts ‘more authentic’ than human-written ones - Jack Groves, Times Higher Ed

Journal abstracts written with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) are perceived as more authentic, clear and compelling than those created solely by academics, a study suggests. While many academics may scorn the idea of outsourcing article summaries to generative AI, a new investigation by researchers at Ontario’s University of Waterloo found peer reviewers rated abstracts written by humans – but paraphrased using generative AI – far more highly than those authored without algorithmic assistance.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ai-authored-abstracts-more-authentic-human-written-ones