The Experience Economy Meets Education: Adapting to New Realities”

Speak Your Mind! 🎯 “The Human Advantage in an AI World: Rethinking Education and Academic Advising” by Dejan Trpkovic

18–JAN–2025 | The Future of Jobs Report 2025 by the World Economic Forum sheds light on the dramatic shifts transforming the global workforce. While its findings span various industries, I’d like to reflect on a few that resonate deeply with education and its supporting sectors – particularly academic advisors, language schools, and educators. These insights challenge us to rethink our strategies to prepare students for an ever-evolving landscape.

Digital Skills: A Non-Negotiable Component of Education

The report underscores that analytical thinking, AI literacy, and technology-related skills will be among the most critical for the workforce of 2025. Skills like coding, data analysis, and cybersecurity have moved from niche to essential, becoming pillars of modern education.

Educational institutions must integrate these skills at every level. High schools and colleges should embed AI literacy and digital problem-solving into their core curricula – not as optional electives but as essential subjects for navigating a tech-driven world.

Language schools also have an opportunity to adapt by blending language proficiency with technology-related skills. Offering courses like “English for AI Professionals” or combining language learning with digital competencies can bridge the gap between communication and tech-focused industries.

Educators, in turn, must embrace roles that technology cannot replicate. While AI can manage routine teaching tasks, teachers should focus on mentoring, facilitating critical discussions, and fostering creativity and collaboration – roles that emphasize the human connection in learning.

The Role of Academic Advisors in an AI-Driven World

The Future of Jobs Report highlights the rising importance of soft skills like empathy, adaptability, and social influence, all of which play a vital role in navigating the uncertainties of a dynamic job market. These findings emphasize the irreplaceable value of human academic advisors.

AI tools and digital platforms may streamline information access, but they cannot replace the nuanced guidance and mentorship that advisors provide. Tailored, human-centered advising aligns with students’ unique needs, helping them make informed choices in a competitive global environment.

The rise of agent aggregators, which use technology to simplify student recruitment, has been a major development in international education. These platforms have expanded access to information and simplified application processes, but they face growing challenges. As immigration laws in key study-abroad destinations tighten, governments are shifting more responsibility onto educators to vet the eligibility of international students. This creates risks for volume-driven, automation-focused recruitment methods that may not adequately address individual needs or compliance requirements.

While agent aggregators remain useful in certain contexts, their ability to adapt to these stricter demands and evolving market expectations remains to be seen. Meanwhile, personalized guidance by academic advisors is becoming increasingly critical—not just for matching students with the right programs, but for helping them navigate complex immigration processes and career paths.

Soft Skills and the “Experience Factor”: Redefining the Future of Schools

All Schools: Cultivating Soft Skills Through Experiential Learning

The report highlights the enduring importance of soft skills such as creativity, resilience, and teamwork, which automation cannot replicate. Schools across all levels must intentionally cultivate these skills through immersive, hands-on learning experiences. Group projects, leadership workshops, and debate clubs can foster collaboration and emotional intelligence, equipping students with tools to thrive in a rapidly evolving world.

Educators must also evolve their roles. Teachers should act as facilitators and mentors, guiding students through collaborative and real-world learning that extends beyond textbooks.

Language Schools: Elevating the “Experience Factor”

For language schools, the rise of AI presents both challenges and opportunities. With AI making traditional language teaching increasingly accessible, students are seeking programs that offer more than linguistic proficiency. The “experience” surrounding education—cultural immersion, meaningful extracurricular activities, and authentic social interactions—is becoming a decisive factor.

Language schools can differentiate themselves by designing programs that integrate language learning with cultural and real-world experiences. Activities that allow students to deeply engage with local cultures or apply language skills in practical settings can create transformative, memorable learning journeys.

Teachers in language schools must also adapt, stepping into mentorship roles and facilitating activities that extend learning into cultural and social contexts. Similarly, the role of skilled activity leaders—professionals who craft and lead extracurricular experiences – will gain significance as these programs become integral to a school’s appeal.

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The Future of Jobs Report 2025 serves as a powerful reminder that education must evolve alongside the workforce. By embedding digital literacy, cultivating soft skills, and creating transformative learning experiences, we can prepare students not only to adapt to change but to lead in an increasingly complex and interconnected world. For further insights, the full report by the World Economic Forum can be accessed here.

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Dejan Trpkovic
Managing Director, PRODIREKT
Founder of Verbalists Education & Language Network

Speak Your Mind!

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Verbalists, a world-leading language network, is about connecting people to the power of languages and joy of journeys that inspire, surprise and entertain. Verbalists is a brand of PRODIREKT, a US based education group, which is a certified, and often exclusive representative of prestigious schools and colleges in world renowned university centers.