On a team call this week, one of our most experienced college counselors mentioned that she’s spending her summer talking students out of computer science. Not all of them. But the ones who show up announcing they want to “major in CS” the way kids a generation ago announced they wanted to be doctors, because someone told them that’s where the money is. She’s read the same headlines I have. There are no entry-level jobs, the articles say. Why steer a sixteen-year-old toward a field that’s busy laying people off?
I pushed back, because the headlines are only half the story. The other half is that the best coders on earth have never been more valuable. When Meta started poaching AI researchers last year, the signing bonuses reportedly hit $100 million, with annual pay on top of that. Those are athlete numbers, paid to people who write code. So which is it? Is software a dead-end major or a lottery ticket?
That’s a trick question: it’s both.
Here is what’s actually happening. Recent computer science graduates now face a 6.1% unemployment rate, according to Federal Reserve Bank of New York data, noticeably worse than the 4.8% average across all college grads and, in a detail that would surprise anyone, higher than the rate for philosophy majors. Part of that is simple oversupply: the country roughly doubled its annual output of CS degrees over the last decade, and a lot of those new graduates arrived in the market at the exact moment AI started doing the work that used to be assigned to juniors. The grunt-level coding, the stuff you’d hand a first-year hire to cut their teeth on, is now the stuff a model does in an afternoon. And the capability curve is bending fast. Anthropic just released Fable 5, the first public model in its “Mythos” class, that is so advanced, the US Government barred Anthropic from giving foreign countries access. The CEO of Palo Alto Networks recently told an audience that the model found vulnerabilities that would have taken his team years to discover, and was able to patch them all within six weeks. When a machine writes and debugs at that level, the bottom rung of that career ladder simply isn’t there anymore.
So the floor fell out of the entry level while the ceiling shot into the stratosphere. The mediocre coder who would have landed a comfortable job in 2015 is now competing with software. The brilliant one is being courted like a free agent. The middle, where most graduates actually live, is getting squeezed from both sides.
Now watch what families are doing in response. They’re sprinting toward the major. The number of bachelor’s degree programs in artificial intelligence in this country jumped from 90 to 193 in a single year, a 114% increase, as universities raced to slap “AI” on a transcript line fast enough to meet demand. I understand the instinct. When a wave is coming, you want your kid on a surfboard. But there’s something worth noticing about a market where everyone is buying the same thing at the same time for the same reason.
Two of the college planners on my team, Ann LaFemina and Ellen Valladares, spent weeks this spring building a webinar on exactly this question — which majors actually prepare a student for the AI era. They’ll be the first to admit they started out knowing almost nothing about it, which is the best possible way to research something, because you’re too busy learning to pretend you already know the answer. They dug through Florida’s programs and the national ones, looked at where jobs are genuinely being created (data analytics and informatics kept surfacing, not just “coding”), and tracked the salaries. You can watch the whole thing here.
What got me was where they landed. After all that research into emerging technical programs, they ended the webinar on a clip of Daniela Amodei, the co-founder and president of Anthropic, one of the companies actually building these systems. Asked what she studied, Amodei said she’d majored in literature at UC Santa Cruz. Zero regrets. And in a February interview she went further, arguing that as AI gets better at the technical work, “studying the humanities is going to be more important than ever.” Understanding ourselves, she said, understanding history, understanding what makes people tick: that’s the part the machine can’t do for you.
I believe she’s right. There’s a hard logic to it. AI’s native language is English. You don’t program these systems so much as talk to them, and the quality of what you get back is almost entirely a function of the quality of what you put in. The person who can think clearly and express an idea with precision gets dramatically more out of the same tool than the person who can’t. I see it in my own work every day. I’ll run several AI agents at once, and the bottleneck is never the technology. It’s how clearly I can describe what I actually want. That capacity is a writing skill before it’s a technical one, which is to say a thinking skill. These systems reward judgment and punish its absence with equal enthusiasm. One enterprise client reportedly burned through a $500 million Claude bill in a single month after turning the tool loose on thousands of employees with no spending caps (many believe it was Amazon). The technology will gladly do whatever you fail to think clearly about, at scale, around the clock.
So when a student asks me what to study, my honest answer has started to sound almost contrarian: become a strong writer first. If you can pair that with a computer science minor, enough to understand how the underlying systems are built and structured, you’ve got something rarer than either piece alone. You understand the machine, and you can articulate what you want it to do. That combination is going to outlast whatever this year’s hot major happens to be called.
None of which means the technical path is dead. Far from it. The students chasing AI concentrations, certificates, the new hybrid programs like Indiana’s Business Intelligence and Data Science track that lives between the computing and business schools, are reading the moment correctly. The opportunity is real. It’s just not evenly distributed, and it rewards depth over the label on the diploma. A “CS major” who can’t communicate is in trouble. A thoughtful generalist who learned to wield these tools and explain her thinking has more doors open than she realizes, including the entrepreneurial ones. The most underrated effect of AI isn’t that it’s replacing workers; it’s that it’s letting one capable person do what used to take a team, which is very good news for anyone willing to hang out their own shingle.
I keep thinking about a student we sent off to Rice a few years back, genuinely brilliant, denied almost everywhere he applied because he insisted on chasing only lottery schools. He landed fine and now works at NVIDIA. The lesson wasn’t about prestige. It was that the kids who do best are the ones who can adapt, who aren’t betting everything on a single narrow bet that the world will still look the same in four years.
That’s the trap with the AI major rush. Families are betting the world will look the same, only more so. But the people closest to this technology keep telling us the opposite: the more capable the machines get at the technical work, the more the distinctly human skills are worth. We spent two decades telling kids the humanities were a luxury they couldn’t afford. The robots may have just made them essential again.
If your student is sorting through this, we wrote more about how AI is reshaping admissions here. But the short version is the one Amodei gave for free: learn to understand people, and learn to say what you mean. The machines still can’t do that part. They’re just very good at rewarding the humans who can.
Can AI Agents Synthesize Scientific Conclusions?: AI agents are increasingly being utilized to synthesize scientific conclusions from extensive evidence, particularly in high-stakes fields like healthcare. The introduction of the SciConBench benchmark, which encompasses 9,107 expertly crafted questions and conclusions, highlights the current capabilities and limitations of these AI systems. In evaluations, the best-performing AI model achieved a factual F1 score of only 0.337, revealing that much of the performance is inflated by the models’ ability to retrieve existing information rather than genuinely synthesize new conclusions. The results emphasize the need for careful evaluation of AI-generated content, especially in contexts where accurate scientific information is critical, as consumer-facing AI tools often produce incomplete or contradictory conclusions despite access to validated data.
Actually, the SAT Was Necessary After All: The ongoing debate over standardized testing in college admissions has intensified, especially within the University of California system, where faculty have voiced significant concerns about students' preparedness in STEM fields. Notably, 45% of 12th graders are now performing below basic levels in mathematics, and high school course participation in precalculus has plummeted from 46% in 2017 to just 33% in 2024. As elite institutions like MIT and Harvard reverse their test-optional policies, the UC system's refusal to consider standardized tests may hinder its ability to accurately assess applicants and worsen the challenges faced by unprepared students. I wrote about this at length last week in my piece, Captain Obvious came to California. A committee is looking at bringing back the test, but they don’t report back until May 2027, which means if they restore the SAT/ACT requirement, it will probably be for the class of 2028.
UC Berkeley professor Zvezdelina Stankova explains push to reinstate standardized exams: The University of California system’s decision to eliminate the SAT requirement has led to significant challenges in the classroom, with approximately one-third of students entering rigorous STEM programs showing severe math deficiencies. This situation has resulted in many bright students struggling to succeed in foundational courses, such as calculus, which affects not only their educational trajectory but also the financial resources of the public university system. In response, over 1,000 professors, including UC Berkeley’s math professor Zvezdelina Stankova, have called for the reinstatement of standardized tests, arguing that these assessments are essential for identifying students’ preparedness. Notably, the risk of failure in remedial courses can reach as high as 46% for unprepared students, emphasizing the urgent need for a more effective admissions strategy that aligns with academic success. When NPR starts covering standardized tests in a positive way, it signals a true end for test-optional.
Some Kid Watched 13,000 Hours of YouTube in Class. Can We Admit Tech in Schools Was a Huge Mistake Now?: The proliferation of technology in classrooms, initially seen as a gateway to enhanced learning, has instead fostered significant distractions for students, exemplified by a seventh-grader in Wichita who watched 13,000 YouTube videos during school hours. This alarming statistic highlights the reality that rather than nurturing curiosity and knowledge, devices like smartphones and laptops have often led students down paths of procrastination and inappropriate content, as algorithms feed them videos glorifying violence and explicit themes. As schools begin to recognize these detrimental effects, some are retracting their reliance on digital tools, indicating a shift in educational philosophy that seeks to reclaim student focus and engagement. The narrative emphasizes the urgent need to reassess how technology is implemented in educational settings, acknowledging the gap between rapid tech advancements and the still-developing cognitive abilities of young learners. My son spent the last several years at an iPad mandatory school, the amount of YouTube he admitted to watching was frightening! I’m glad he will be finishing his high school career at my school, Score Academy.
Five Things to Know About Colleges Reinstating the SAT:
Test-Optional Policies: While about 90% of colleges do not require the SAT or ACT, many students still choose to take the SAT. Admissions officers often consider submitted scores when evaluating candidates.
Declining Test Performance: There has been a notable decline in the percentage of high school students meeting the SAT’s math and reading benchmarks, with fewer than 40% of test-takers meeting the standards last year.
High School Grade Inflation: Advocates for reinstating standardized tests argue that GPA has become less reliable due to rising high school GPAs, which may weaken their predictive power for college success.
Elite Schools Reinstating Requirements: Prestigious institutions like Yale, MIT, and Dartmouth have begun to require SAT or ACT scores again, following a period of more flexible policies. Additionally, there has been a push from faculty at the University of California to reinstate exam requirements.
Declining Average SAT Scores: The moves to reinstate testing come amid falling average SAT scores, which adds to the argument for the importance of standardized testing in college admissions.
The Hyperpoliticization of Higher Ed: Trends in Faculty Political Ideology, 1969–Present: For nearly three decades, the political makeup of college faculty held remarkably steady, with liberal and far-left professors shifting just a tenth of a percentage point between 1969 and 1998. That stability broke after 2001: by 2016–17, liberal and far-left faculty had climbed to 59.8 percent, a 15-point jump driven largely by the far-left cohort, which tripled from 4.2 to 11.5 percent. Authors Phillip Magness and David Waugh, writing in The Independent Review, note the shift is sharpest in the humanities and social sciences, where moderates and conservatives have nearly vanished, while STEM and professional fields retain more balance. Incoming students, by contrast, still cluster near the political center, creating a widening gap between professors and the classes they teach. The article also documents a parallel rise in faculty who see encouraging students toward "social change" as central to their teaching — 80.6 percent by 2016–17, up from 57.8 percent in 2007–08. I wonder why we have these ridiculous protests on college campuses. I don't have a problem with one side outweighing the other slightly, but we're not even close to balance.
Eight Predictions for the Future of Higher Education:
Consolidation of Universities: Many universities may merge or close due to financial pressures and changing demand, leading to a more concentrated higher education landscape.
Shift in Educational Value: The perceived necessity of a college degree may diminish, as alternatives and technology-based learning become more prevalent.
Rise of Alternative Education Models: As traditional education models are questioned, we might see a surge in alternative forms of education, such as online courses and vocational training.
Impact of AI on Learning: Artificial intelligence will significantly change how students learn and access information, potentially flattening the distinctions between educational pathways.
Reevaluation of Class Mobility: Colleges may need to reassess their role in providing class mobility, moving away from exclusivity towards broader access to education.
Increased Demand for Affordability: As concerns over tuition and student debt grow, there may be a push for more affordable education options, particularly in community colleges.
Changing Student Demographics: The profiles of students entering college will evolve, reflecting wider societal changes and varying motivations for pursuing higher education.
Focus on Public Good: Higher education institutions may shift their focus towards serving the public good, emphasizing education as a societal necessity rather than a personal achievement.
This all boils down to ROI. There is a serious misalignment between the cost of college and the value it delivers. College closures and mergers will likely accelerate as more and more colleges breach the $100,000 per year threshold.
MIT is not alone. Colleges are infected with administrative bloat.
Conservatives Took Over a Progressive College. What Happened Next?: New College of Florida has undergone significant changes since its leadership shifted towards conservative governance in 2023, prompting an increase to over 900 students. The new administration emphasizes "free speech, academic freedom, and civil discourse," distancing itself from the previous culture, which was often characterized by a focus on identity politics. Approximately 40% of faculty left, but the new hires have introduced fresh perspectives while maintaining the institution's commitment to experimental learning. Notably, the implementation of athletic programs has drawn over 400 student athletes, contributing to a campus environment that many now describe as inclusive, with increased representation for conservative viewpoints. While concerns remain about the perceived decline in academic rigor and course offerings related to feminist and race studies, the college’s commitment to broadening its curriculum to include the Western canon signifies a shift in educational focus. I was against this takeover - governors shouldn't be interfering with state colleges. That said, things haven't gone as badly as I feared.
Eva Longoria says this quality is more important than an Ivy League education: 'Do you have the capacity to figure it out?': Resourcefulness emerges as a crucial trait for success in both creative and business ventures, according to Eva Longoria, who emphasizes that the ability to "figure it out" often outweighs prestigious educational backgrounds. Longoria's experiences on the set of "Desperate Housewives" taught her the importance of collaboration, mentorship, and learning from a diverse range of voices. She advocates for the value of seeking out knowledge through observation and study, citing figures like Martin Scorsese and Oprah Winfrey as inspirations—demonstrating that mentorship can occur even without personal connection. Additionally, she warns against the dangers of making assumptions and encourages individuals to ask questions and seek guidance, reinforcing that humility is key in the pursuit of knowledge and solutions. This perspective can serve as a guiding principle for students navigating their educational paths and for counselors advising them on career readiness and personal development. Eva Longoria may not be who you think of first when it comes to business advice, but she did invest $6 million of her own money in John Wick and still receives dividend checks today. For what it’s worth, I completely agree with her advice. In fact, one of my favorite interview “traps” is to schedule an interview and tell the interviewee to meet me in my Boca office. If they ask me for an address, I cancel the interview. If you can’t figure that out for yourself, how many questions will we have to answer for you when you have the job?
Killing the mood: smartphones reduce birth rate, studies say: Recent studies have identified a significant correlation between smartphone use and declining birth rates, particularly among younger populations. Research from Middlebury College revealed that the introduction of the iPhone in 2007 correlated with a 4.5-8.0% decrease in births among teenagers (ages 15-19) and a 3.2-6.6% decline for young adults (ages 20-24). The increase in smartphone access appears to have diminished in-person social interactions and sexual activity, while simultaneously contributing to rising pornography consumption, potentially replacing partnered sexual experiences. Additionally, a global analysis showed that as smartphones became more prevalent, teenage fertility rates declined across diverse nations, indicating a shared "technology shock." It seems like smartphones ruin everything!
What I’m Watching: I attended an AI conference in Orlando this week with a good friend who teaches at Lynn. She told me to watch Pluribus on Apple TV. So far I haven’t been disappointed. Pluribus follows Carrol, a best-selling author, who appears to be one of 12 humans on earth who haven’t been infected by some type of virus that created a hive mind amongst the rest of the population.
What I’m Reading: I’m more than halfway done with The Fourth Option, which has gotten me reading every morning again.
My Favorite Recent Podcast: Nothing worth sharing this week.
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