Jobscan<\/a>, resumes can be scanned by algorithms and applications filtered before reaching employers. To combat this, John Parmelee, director of the School of Communications at UNF, said the university is adapting by introducing AI-focused coursework.\u00a0<\/p>\nJob rejections<\/p>\n
David Rodebaugh, a UNF student double majoring in Finance and International Business, is no stranger to the \u201cstruggles\u201d of the new era job application process, with the AI systems often generating a rejection letter just minutes after submission.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just gets so discouraging knowing that no one is actually looking at your application,\u201d Rodebaugh said. \u201cSometimes it\u2019s like 3 a.m., minutes later, so you know it\u2019s probably AI,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
That discouragement is something UNF faculty are actively working to address with new coursework and programs to make them better job candidates, according to Rachel Riggs-Achorn, an assistant professor of public relations in UNF\u2019s School of Communication.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStudents still need to understand how to use these AI systems for the workplace,\u201d Riggs-Achorn said. \u201cWe are being told that companies are using these programs, and we want students to know how to use these tools,\u201d Riggs-Achorn said.<\/p>\n
AI vs. AI<\/p>\n
Rodebaugh said that one of the university\u2019s finance professors, Pieter de Jong, highlighted the importance of resume and cover letter formatting for the AI applicant tracking system.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe sent us a list of flag words and tools to use on your resume,\u201d Rodebaugh said. \u201cThings like don\u2019t use multiple columns. If the PDF isn\u2019t readable, the system will throw it away.\u201d<\/p>\n
De Jong, a finance professor at UNF and the director of the Master of Science in Fintech program, said AI tracking software is becoming more prevalent in the job market, forcing applicants to become more proactive in the job market.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is particularly difficult for entry-level positions since there are now so many applicants applying for the same position, and it seems that candidates would need to tailor their resumes to match with the keywords in the job description,\u201d de Jong said.<\/p>\n
De Jong said students can use AI to tailor their resumes depending on the job posting, but said that there are limitations, with AI having its imperfections.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The AI is programmed to appeal to the student using the algorithm, but also is being asked to appeal to the employer of the application, which \u201ccould result in a false positive\u201d, according to de Jong.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is always better to have a human check your work,\u201d de Jong said.<\/p>\n
AI in the classroom<\/p>\n
Parmelee said that UNF had added several new AI-centered courses into the curriculum to help students learn AI tools that could be implemented in the workplace.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The curriculum includes Global Communication in the Age of AI, Content Creation and AI, Advanced AI Literacy, AI and Media Ethics, and AI Video Effects, according to Parmelee.<\/p>\n
Parmelee said student organizations like the School of Communications Multimedia Club and the Public Relations Student Society of America often host events with industry professionals. This allows students to get comfortable with AI tools in a professional context before entering the workforce, according to Parmelee.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf students take the time to be involved in all these activities, they will already be on a first-name basis with many of these media executives they want jobs from, and that will increase the callback rate,\u201d Parmelee said.<\/p>\n
Using AI as a tool, not an author<\/p>\n
UNF faculty members are hoping that students will use AI responsibly, allowing their critical thinking to stay in the process and using artificial intelligence as a tool rather than a shortcut, according to Riggs-Achorn.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing able to form thoughts and coherently write them down, revising, and actually thinking your idea is what demonstrates a cognitive sense-making process that you skip if you just put that into ChatGPT and copy-paste your output,\u201d Riggs-Achorn said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to Riggs-Achorn, students solely relying on AI systems for problem-solving isn\u2019t effective long-term.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you remove the friction from that and you just plop in what your problem is, they are only going to give you what has been done in the past,\u201d Riggs-Achorn said. \u201cAt some point, that is not going to be enough, and we will have to think critically.\u201d<\/p>\n
Riggs-Achorn said that faculty understands that students are entering a difficult job market and recalls being in college during the 2008 recession, watching her older cousin enter a similarly unsteady workforce.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe world kind of felt how it does now, where everything seemed kind of in flux,\u201d she said. \u201cThe market will stabilize. We have been here before.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Riggs-Achorn said the faculty do not want students to feel demotivated by the job market.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not perfect right away, and you have to pivot sometimes,\u201d Riggs-Achorn said. \u201cIf you cannot, then we will not have anyone who will be able to help us fix all the larger problems in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
___<\/p>\n
For more information or news tips, or if you see an error in this story or have any compliments or concerns, contact [email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As artificial intelligence reshapes the job market through applicant tracking systems, faculty at the University of North Florida…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":340986,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-340985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/340985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=340985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/340985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/340986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=340985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=340985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=340985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}