PODCAST | Bridging the academic and AI-driven workplace disconnect

The disconnect between education and AI-driven workplaces is the focus of this edition of Business Day Spotlight. 

Host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Cobus Oosthuizen, dean of postgraduate studies at Boston City Campus.

Oosthuizen says that despite the rapid evolution of AI and other technologies, many SA tertiary institutions remain largely rooted in traditional curriculums, resulting in a disconnect between academic education and real-world requirements. 

The question through the discussion is simple: as technology reshapes industries, are tertiary institutions sufficiently equipping SA youth to succeed in an AI-driven job market?

Oosthuizen outlines how technological growth is outpacing educational adaptation, and warns that curriculums are progressing too slowly to keep pace with advances in technology.

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He also highlights a skills mismatch crisis where the skills acquired are not necessarily the skills required in the workplace. 

To help this situation, overall, Oosthuizen says there’s a need for academia and industry collaboration. Industry players who hire skills out of tertiary and other institutions need to be more involved in communicating the skills needed by the workplace, with places of learning working to fill those gaps accordingly. 

Topics of discussion include: ways in which academia can keep up with the changing technology in the workplace; how to integrate AI into tertiary education; gaps in academia hampering workplace preparation; preparing students for continuous change; and collaboration between industry and academia. 

Business Day Spotlight is a MultimediaLIVE Production. 

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