Ask a college president what students need to graduate ready for work, and AI is now near the top of the list. More than a third of entry-level jobs now require AI skills, nearly triple the share six months earlier. Yet 63% of faculty say recent graduates aren't prepared to use AI in the workplace.
Most academic leaders agree AI belongs in the curriculum. The harder question is who will teach it, especially at small, tuition-dependent institutions.
Why AI is so hard to build in-house
AI adds hurdles most new programs don't face:
- The expertise is scarce. Faculty who can teach AI well are in high demand, and small colleges can't compete with industry salaries.
- Faculty are being asked to fill the gap. Many colleges are asking existing faculty to work AI into their courses, often with no training, little time and no desire to teach it.
- Every major needs something different. A nursing student, a business major and a computer science student all need AI, but not the same course.
- The content goes stale fast. A course built today may be out of date within a year.
So many institutions stall, and students graduate without the skills employers are hiring for.
A different model: shared AI courses
Rize Education helps colleges lower costs and grow enrollment through a shared program model, letting them launch high-demand, career-focused programs faster and for far less than building them alone. Its two AI programs have been adopted 94 times across the network of institutions.
- AI Literacy, for every student in any major: how AI works, how to use it well, and where the ethical lines are.
- Applied AI, a technical track covering predictive modeling and working with data in Python.
With more than 1,800 students enrolled through these courses, Rize Education can finally answer the question provosts ask most: do students actually value an online AI course?
What 1,800 students told us
Rize surveys students at the middle and end of every course. Here’s what they said:
Students rate these courses as highly as others. 89% of Applied AI responses and 83% of AI Literacy responses rate the course as good as or better than other online courses students have taken. Against on-campus courses, the figures are 76% and 73%.
Limited AI experience didn’t hold students back. AI Literacy students rated their prior familiarity with AI just 3.9 out of 7, yet rated their confidence in finishing with a good grade 6.2 out of 7.
A well-run course shapes the experience. Students gave their highest marks to clear assignment instructions, reasonable grading and helpful instructors. As one AI Literacy student put it: "This course is challenging but all of the assignments work together to give a clear, functional foundational knowledge of AI that can immediately be put to use in professional and private settings."
For more than 1,300 students, an AI course was their first Rize-powered course, a sign these programs draw students in rather than just checking a box.
What this means for academic leaders
- Start with literacy for everyone. One AI Literacy course can fit a general education requirement and reach every major.
- Offer a deeper track. Applied AI gives technically-minded students a path from understanding AI to working with it.
- Take the burden off faculty. Shared courses let institutions launch in months, without new hires or asking faculty to become AI experts overnight.
Employers are asking for AI skills, and students are rating these courses as highly as anything else they take. The full results break down what 1,800 students said about both programs.
