Choosing a path for the future has never been easy, but for young people today, such rapid technological change as artificial intelligence (AI) is making it increasingly difficult to predict which skills will remain relevant in the years ahead.
Key takeaways
Nearly 40 per cent of skills workers rely on now could change or become outdated by 2030, but Francesca Fanelli, senior associate director of Columbia University, has some tips:
- Do not search for an "AI-proof" career
- Knowing how to use AI effectively is becoming a valuable workplace skill
- Explore opportunities across different industries and remain open to new directions as the world of work continues to evolve
- Focus on interests and strengths while building a broad "toolkit" of transferable skills
Highlighting the importance of equipping young people with what is needed for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship, World Youth Skills Day , marked annually on 15 July, raises an important question related to its 2026 theme, Skills for the Shared Future: how can young people prepare for labour market needs that will continue to evolve throughout their lives?
"I think young people today need to be more open-minded, more flexible, more adaptable," said Francesca Fanelli, senior associate director of graduate career development at Columbia University.
Amid helping students and recent graduates navigate today's competitive and rapidly changing job market, she spoke with UN News about some of the best ways to rise to the challenge.
Skills for an uncertain future
The World Economic Forum estimates that nearly 40 per cent of the skills workers rely on now could change or become outdated by 2030, making adaptability and lifelong learning more important than ever.
The answer is not to search for an "AI-proof" career, Ms. Fanelli said.
While some students are reconsidering their career choices and showing greater interest in skilled trades, which are widely viewed as less vulnerable to automation, she cautioned against basing decisions primarily on assumptions about which jobs will be least affected by AI and technological change.
Instead, she advises young people to focus on their interests and strengths while building a broad "toolkit" of transferable skills that can serve them across different roles throughout their careers.
Rather than committing themselves to a single career path, Ms. Fanelli encourages students to explore opportunities across different industries and remain open to new directions as the world of work continues to evolve.
With AI, 'you're still the problem solver'
While the future of work may be difficult to predict, Ms. Fanelli believes one thing is already clear: knowing how to use AI effectively is becoming a valuable workplace skill.
"AI literacy is a skill now that employers look for," she says. "They want to make sure that people entering their office know how to use the tool."
This includes knowing how to ask the right questions and write clear prompts while taking responsibility for fact-checking the information AI produces and deciding how to apply it.
"You have to use it as an assistant rather than as a problem solver," Ms. Fanelli says. "You're still the problem solver."
