Key points:
- Fifty-nine percent of employers say AI has caused them to prioritize different skills when hiring
- Half of employers have dropped degree requirements for entry-level roles
- See related article: How to help your students prepare for a career
Half of graduates (46 percent) feel threatened by AI and question their workforce readiness (52 percent), according to Cengage Group’s 2023 Employability Report, the third annual report surveying 1,000 graduates who completed a degree or non-degree program in the last 12 months and 1,000 U.S. hiring decision makers.
The job landscape has been completely transformed. In response to workplace transitions like The Great Resignation, Quiet Quitting, and the rise and adoption of AI, employer hiring habits continue to evolve–50 percent of employers now admit they’ve dropped 2- and 4-year degree requirements for entry-level positions (a 32 percent increase over 2022) and started prioritizing softer skills and previous job experience (66 percent).
And while these shifts signal a move toward skills-based hiring (over degree-based hiring), they also introduce new uncertainties for graduates.
According to the growth of emerging technologies, like generative AI, have a third of grads second-guessing their career choice. Additionally, more than half (52%) of graduates say competition from AI has them questioning how prepared they are for the workforce.
- Weak tech could push students, faculty to other institutions - April 13, 2026
- 13 predictions about edtech, innovation, and–yes–AI in 2026 - January 1, 2026
- 5 essential dimensions of AI literacy - December 12, 2025