AI’s Rapid Rise Leaves Young Workers Struggling to Adapt in Today’s Workplace

As artificial intelligence reshapes the modern workplace, many young workers say they’re struggling to keep pace—and subsequently having a hard time finding jobs.

Recently, the labor market has been slow to add workers, especially recent college graduates. As of June 2025, 4.8% of recent college graduates were unemployed, compared to 4% of all workers, according to the latest report from the New York Federal Reserve.

Many economists say tariffs are partly to blame, but a significant factor, which has been brewing for several years, is the growing use of artificial intelligence in the workforce. These tools have increasingly affected early-career white-collar workers such as software developers and accountants.

As technology and AI advance in offices, seven out of 10 workers feel they are unprepared for today’s workforce, according to a recent survey by Instructure, the makers of Canvas, an online education management system. For young workers, the situation is even worse, with 87% of Gen Z, those born between 1997 and 2012, reporting they feel unprepared.

Investopedia talked to Ryan Lufkin, vice president of global academic strategy at Instructure, about the future of a workforce that incorporates AI and how young workers can differentiate themselves in the evolving labor market. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

INVESTOPEDIA: Many workers in Instructure’s survey said they feel unprepared for today’s workforce. What factors are making them feel this way?

RYAN LUFKIN: Part of it is that the acceleration of AI and other emerging technologies has grown so rapidly over the last three years, and universities are attempting to evolve to support that. What we see is this disconnect between employers and educational institutions regarding the skills they need. 

We’re kind of moving beyond just a basic set of skills, and we’re really now focusing more on developing the growth mindset for these students to be lifelong learners, because we know that they’re going to stay in jobs for less time.

Our survey found that most of them tend to change jobs every two or three years… So they need reskilling and upskilling as they change those careers. We need to make sure they’ve got that growth mindset. Failure is part of learning, and openness to change—those are things that will make them more successful in today’s job market.

INVESTOPEDIA: Although Gen Z workers and students grew up with evolving technology, this generation was more likely to say they feel the most unprepared for the workforce and are overwhelmed by technological changes. What is creating this gap between their education and entering the workforce?

LUFKIN: This rapid change [in technology] has created some inconsistencies in how we address technologies. A lot of them may have gone to high school and college in a time when they were being told not to use AI. They’re being told AI is cheating, yet they move into the workspace, and you’ve got mixed messages from employers on how to use AI and how much they’re being used.

We’ve got to figure that out, and a lot of that is that we’re bringing educators and employers together to make sure that we’re having more consistent messaging for these students, making sure that they’re prepared with the skills they need, with the growth mindset to actually be effective, and then bringing that knowledge into the organization so they’re more effective.

INVESTOPEDIA: Reports have shown that recent college graduates are having a hard time finding employment after graduation. What factors in today’s workforce are creating this problem?

LUFKIN: Traditionally, college programs, because of the accreditation process around degree programs, they’re a bit slow to evolve, because it takes a long time to get accreditation for these programs. So what we’ve seen is institutions providing a lot more non-degree programs, more certificate-type programs, and those ideas that students can use.

We talk a lot about the ROI crisis that universities have gone through previously. Is it worth the cost of getting a degree? Data shows that it absolutely is. You will make more money over the course of your lifetime, but when those programs don’t necessarily align with the jobs, that’s a challenge.

The other piece is that some of the jobs that used to be entry-level positions for students are now being automated, not fully automated, but optimized by AI. So, instead of hiring six interns, maybe they only hire a single intern who is managing those tasks using AI. That’s creating a bit of a new chasm that we didn’t expect.

INVESTOPEDIA: What can recent college grads and young workers do to make themselves stand out and be indispensable as AI changes workplaces?

LUFKIN: One of the biggest things is getting the initial degree, which opens so many doors and provides additional pathways. But that willingness to be a lifelong learner and having that growth mindset is incredibly important. Understanding that throughout your career, you can direct your path with those non-degree programs or credential programs. 

If you start your career in marketing… but you want to do more of the analytics side, you can do a certificate [to get into] data-driven marketing, things like that. That idea that you don’t have to know completely where you want to go as you graduate, but having a basic idea builds that foundation.

Then, as you approach it with a lifelong learning mindset, you’re able to actually upscale and rescale throughout your journey. There’s never been more opportunity for educational redirection than we have now. We’ve seen a huge growth in non-degree programs post-COVID, and those really are universities attempting to meet businesses where they are and shift that ability for students to build the skills they need for different programs.

INVESTOPEDIA: What is your advice to workers who are scared that AI or other technological advances will put them out of a job?

LUFKIN: There have been a lot of stories that talk about AI replacing humans, and even some high-profile tech leaders making claims about AI replacing humans.

But I think, fundamentally, they’re overestimating the power of AI. AI is an amazing tool to scale and to support creativity. But what we’re seeing across the board is that those human skills of communication, connection, and creativity are really the new focus for us as humans, and we use AI to automate some of the more boring tasks.

I really encourage people to look at these tools as tools that support us and help a lot with collaboration. Human and AI collaboration, really, is what the future looks like.