4 answers
Francis
Student
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
2
Questions
Updated
836 views
Is AI useful for college or for careers?
I see that software such as AI use to circumvent the necessary obstacles of university disciplinary structure should be prohibited. Especially when it comes to writing whole sentences and ideas for you. However, how does AI actually enhance the college experience?
As in terms of careers as well, does it make life easier in a productive way or a lazy way? I say it is both, but I am not in the workplace yet, though I might use AI to generate a computer model for my engineering projects.
I think AI is useful for putting together study guides or looking up relevant sources online, but what else can AI do for your education or for your career?
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4 answers
Kirthi KN
Computers
35
Answers
Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Updated
Kirthi’s Answer
Hello Francis,
I am Kirthi from Verizon (India).
Actually, you have hit the nail on the head. I completely agree that using AI to simply write your papers or bypass the hard work is a strict no-no. It defeats the whole purpose of learning, na? If the software does the thinking for you, then what is left for the brain?
But coming to your question about how it actually helps—think of AI less like a ghostwriter and more like a really smart study buddy who is available 24/7.
For College:
Clearing Doubts: Sometimes the professor’s lecture might go over your head. You can ask AI to "explain this concept to me like I am 12 years old," and it breaks it down beautifully.
Revision: During exam time, when the syllabus is huge, AI can help summarize long research papers or chapters into key bullet points. It saves so much time.
Mock Vivas/Interviews: You can tell the AI to act like an interviewer for your engineering project and ask you tough questions. It is great practice before the real thing.
For Career: In the workplace, it is not really about "lazy" vs "productive"—it is about efficiency. The corporate world is quite hectic.
Removing Grunt Work: Like you mentioned about engineering models—why spend hours doing the manual setup if AI can generate the base for you? This lets you focus on the actual complex problem-solving/designing part.
Coding & Debugging: For engineers, it is a blessing for finding bugs in code or suggesting optimizations.
Drafting: Writing standard emails or reports can be automated so you can focus on the core work.
The catch is, your fundamentals must be strong. You should know enough to catch the AI if it hallucinates or gives wrong info. It helps you run faster, but you still need to know how to walk, you know?
So, definitely use it, but use it to upskill yourself, not to replace yourself. All the best with your studies!
I am Kirthi from Verizon (India).
Actually, you have hit the nail on the head. I completely agree that using AI to simply write your papers or bypass the hard work is a strict no-no. It defeats the whole purpose of learning, na? If the software does the thinking for you, then what is left for the brain?
But coming to your question about how it actually helps—think of AI less like a ghostwriter and more like a really smart study buddy who is available 24/7.
For College:
Clearing Doubts: Sometimes the professor’s lecture might go over your head. You can ask AI to "explain this concept to me like I am 12 years old," and it breaks it down beautifully.
Revision: During exam time, when the syllabus is huge, AI can help summarize long research papers or chapters into key bullet points. It saves so much time.
Mock Vivas/Interviews: You can tell the AI to act like an interviewer for your engineering project and ask you tough questions. It is great practice before the real thing.
For Career: In the workplace, it is not really about "lazy" vs "productive"—it is about efficiency. The corporate world is quite hectic.
Removing Grunt Work: Like you mentioned about engineering models—why spend hours doing the manual setup if AI can generate the base for you? This lets you focus on the actual complex problem-solving/designing part.
Coding & Debugging: For engineers, it is a blessing for finding bugs in code or suggesting optimizations.
Drafting: Writing standard emails or reports can be automated so you can focus on the core work.
The catch is, your fundamentals must be strong. You should know enough to catch the AI if it hallucinates or gives wrong info. It helps you run faster, but you still need to know how to walk, you know?
So, definitely use it, but use it to upskill yourself, not to replace yourself. All the best with your studies!
Sandeep Khandelwal
Software Engineer
50
Answers
San Ramon, California
Updated
Sandeep’s Answer
That is a thoughtful and balanced perspective. You've correctly identified the dual nature of AI, it can be both a tool for productive efficiency and an enabler of shortcuts. The key to its success in both college and your career is learning to use it as a powerful co-pilot for intellectual labor, not as an automated substitute for thinking.
In college, AI's greatest utility lies in accelerating the research and comprehension phase, allowing you to focus on the high-level intellectual work. Beyond creating study guides and summarizing sources, AI excels at synthesizing complex, cross-disciplinary ideas (e.g., asking it to explain how a computer science algorithm is relevant to a business case study), quickly generating prototypes or baseline models for engineering projects (like the computer model you mentioned), and critiquing your work's structure, not its content. When you use AI to check the clarity of your arguments or the efficiency of your code before you submit it, you are actively raising your standard of work and simulating professional peer review, which accelerates your learning far beyond what rote writing can do.
In your career, AI is a productive force for efficiency, not laziness. The jobs AI makes obsolete are not those that use AI, but those that refuse to. AI takes over the tedious, repetitive tasks that consume most junior-level time like writing code, analyzing log files, summarizing meeting notes, or performing initial data cleaning. This shift means that human professionals are immediately vaulted into higher-value roles focused on strategic decision-making, creative problem-solving, and human collaboration. The best professional use of AI is to rapidly iterate through solutions (e.g., generate 10 coding solutions, then manually select and refine the best one), freeing your time to focus on truly complex challenges that require unique human judgment and empathy.
In college, AI's greatest utility lies in accelerating the research and comprehension phase, allowing you to focus on the high-level intellectual work. Beyond creating study guides and summarizing sources, AI excels at synthesizing complex, cross-disciplinary ideas (e.g., asking it to explain how a computer science algorithm is relevant to a business case study), quickly generating prototypes or baseline models for engineering projects (like the computer model you mentioned), and critiquing your work's structure, not its content. When you use AI to check the clarity of your arguments or the efficiency of your code before you submit it, you are actively raising your standard of work and simulating professional peer review, which accelerates your learning far beyond what rote writing can do.
In your career, AI is a productive force for efficiency, not laziness. The jobs AI makes obsolete are not those that use AI, but those that refuse to. AI takes over the tedious, repetitive tasks that consume most junior-level time like writing code, analyzing log files, summarizing meeting notes, or performing initial data cleaning. This shift means that human professionals are immediately vaulted into higher-value roles focused on strategic decision-making, creative problem-solving, and human collaboration. The best professional use of AI is to rapidly iterate through solutions (e.g., generate 10 coding solutions, then manually select and refine the best one), freeing your time to focus on truly complex challenges that require unique human judgment and empathy.
Allan Thompson
Volunteer
17
Answers
San Jose, California
Updated
Allan’s Answer
Understanding AI, and knowing how to use it effectively, is important for both your college experience and your career. Learn how to use AI wisely while you are in college or university so you are well prepared for a career where you and your colleagues use AI to improve productively and minimize repetitive drudgery.
Approach college and your career with enthusiasm and confidence!
Approach college and your career with enthusiasm and confidence!
Justine Shamey
education
10
Answers
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Updated
Justine’s Answer
It's useful in college for conducting research