University students have no doubts: Stem disciplines open the doors to the world of work

63% of Italian university students believe that a degree in technical, digital or IT disciplines offers more job opportunities than all the others, demonstrating the importance of Stem skills in obtaining more employment opportunities at the end of the university cycle. This is a preference expressed not only by those who attend degree courses in this field but also by students from humanistic faculties Undergraduates are also clear about the different ways of attending courses: 57% prefer a hybrid model of university education, with a balanced combination of face-to-face and live streaming lectures, as well as asynchronous digital content that can be accessed at any time. With this polarisation between in-presence and online universities (11 in Italy), 73% of university students say they would be willing to attend university courses exclusively online if they were of recognised quality; ideally, if they could make the choice related to their degree course again, 44% of students would no longer opt for a physical university but for an online one, provided it was of recognised quality.

The data emerged from a survey by OPIT - Open Institute of Technology, an academic institution accredited at European level, carried out on a sample of 1,500 baccalaureate and university students belonging to the Docsity community, the platform for sharing documents and content of interest to students with more than 15 million members. The research was presented during the event L'istruzione universitaria nell'era dell'Intelligenza Artificiale that took place in Turin at Spazio35 in the Intesa Sanpaolo Skyscraper. Moderated by journalist Enrico Pagliarini, speakers included Professor Francesco Profumo, Rector of OPIT (Open Institute of Technology) and former Minister of Education, Elena Bonfiglioli, global business leader at Microsoft, Germano Buttazzo, senior manager for the Academic sector at LinkedIn, Alessandro Risaro, founder of DataPizza and Riccardo Ocleppo, founder of OPIT and Docsity.

"The research provided us with a detailed overview of students' expectations and preferences regarding university education," explained Riccardo Ocleppo, founder and director of OPIT. "Universities today are called upon to respond quickly to the need for education in innovative disciplines with hybrid modes of delivery. This transition could be facilitated by partnerships between traditional universities and new quality and innovative online institutions such as OPIT. Today, the field of education offers various possibilities and, above all, university teaching models that are excellent, accredited and, at the same time, innovative and in line with the demands of the world of work. In this era of great transformation and acceleration, skills change rapidly: academic education has the task of keeping pace, becoming more agile in order to remain up-to-date and current. Otherwise, the risk is that we will no longer be able to adequately train the workers of today and tomorrow, precluding them from the enormous opportunities that this era of transitions offers'.

Interesting aspects also emerge from the survey in terms of internationalisation. These are positive signs that begin to show a future in line with what is happening in the most advanced European countries in the field of university education. In fact, 77% of those interviewed are willing to study an entire degree or master's course in English. A preference that could also have an impact on the levels of appreciation of the university experience they are experiencing. Thirty-three per cent of university students said they were only partially satisfied with their university experience, identifying the following areas as priorities for improvement: the updating and practicality of study programmes (58%), the possibility of accessing courses in hybrid mode (55%) and connections with companies to facilitate job opportunities (47%). With regard to continuing education, 85% of university graduates consider it essential to continue studying even after starting work and 74% of respondents are interested in taking individual university courses on specific topics, without necessarily having to enrol in a full degree programme.

"We grew up thinking that learning meant following a set path: starting in primary school, attending middle school and high school, and, for the luckiest or most ambitious, finishing by taking a degree," added Professor Francesco Profumo, Rector of OPIT. "But this model needs to be revised and adapted to the times. What is needed is a circular school education, which envisages returning to the desks several times in one's life to get up to speed, forgetting or erasing knowledge that is now obsolete because it has been superseded by the achievements of the rapid and pervasive industrial revolution underway, driven by the advent of Artificial Intelligence. A large majority of university students declare themselves well disposed not to stop studying. To this noble intention must also be added a skill that must be acquired and not left behind: learning to learn. Today, adults must be able to do this, but in the near future it will be the primary school that will have to transfer this skill to the youngest children so that it will be a baggage for them for life'.