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Research shows a notable gender gap in how students view AI’s impact on education and careers.
IOWA CITY, IA — Male students, on average, are noticeably more optimistic in their views toward artificial intelligence (AI) compared to their female peers, according to new research from ACT. The report, released today, highlights a notable gender gap in high school students’ perspectives on AI, including its trustworthiness, potential impact on jobs, and its role in society.
The research shows that, in addition to having more optimistic views, male students were also more likely than female students to agree that knowing how to use AI would help prepare them for a college major, give them an advantage when applying to college, and be important in their planned college majors.
“We found that students viewed some aspects of AI, such as its potential effect on their lives, more favorably than others, and that AI can be related to a student’s choice of college major,” said Jeff Schiel, a lead research scientist at ACT and author of the report. The study also found that students’ attitudes toward AI are positively related to the amount of AI training they receive in high school.
The research and report are based on a survey of students who registered for the ACT in December 2024. In the survey, some students shared examples of how AI has changed their future academic and career plans.
“I used to be very interested in computer science, but the emergence of AI has made me think that the need for humans in computer science will be obsolete in the future,” wrote one high schooler, who is an aspiring health sciences and technology major.
Another student shared that, “With the advancement of AI, I wanted even more to go into medicine to see how artificial intelligence can help the overall well-being of the people.”
Other students, however, were less optimistic about how AI impacts their future job prospects.
“I originally was interested in graphic design. But after seeing the abundance of AI-generated art and how companies have been taking advantage of it, I fear the job will not be as dependable financially and will not be seen as valuable to others,” replied one student who initially was an aspiring arts major.
Key Findings:
The report is based on responses to an online survey administered to a random sample of 81,689 high school students from Grades 9-12 who registered for the December 2024 national ACT test. A total of 3,816 students responded to the survey. Read the full report to learn more about student perspectives on AI.
About ACT:
ACT is transforming college and career readiness pathways so that everyone can discover and fulfill their potential. Grounded in more than 65 years of research, ACT’s learning resources, assessments, research, and work-ready credentials are trusted by students, job seekers, educators, schools, government agencies, and employers in the U.S. and around the world to help people achieve their education and career goals at every stage of life. Visit us at www.act.org.
Contact: publicrelations@act.org
Research shows a notable gender gap in how students view AI’s impact on education and careers.
IOWA CITY, IA — Male students, on average, are noticeably more optimistic in their views toward artificial intelligence (AI) compared to their female peers, according to new research from ACT. The report, released today, highlights a notable gender gap in high school students’ perspectives on AI, including its trustworthiness, potential impact on jobs, and its role in society.
The research shows that, in addition to having more optimistic views, male students were also more likely than female students to agree that knowing how to use AI would help prepare them for a college major, give them an advantage when applying to college, and be important in their planned college majors.
“We found that students viewed some aspects of AI, such as its potential effect on their lives, more favorably than others, and that AI can be related to a student’s choice of college major,” said Jeff Schiel, a lead research scientist at ACT and author of the report. The study also found that students’ attitudes toward AI are positively related to the amount of AI training they receive in high school.
The research and report are based on a survey of students who registered for the ACT in December 2024. In the survey, some students shared examples of how AI has changed their future academic and career plans.
“I used to be very interested in computer science, but the emergence of AI has made me think that the need for humans in computer science will be obsolete in the future,” wrote one high schooler, who is an aspiring health sciences and technology major.
Another student shared that, “With the advancement of AI, I wanted even more to go into medicine to see how artificial intelligence can help the overall well-being of the people.”
Other students, however, were less optimistic about how AI impacts their future job prospects.
“I originally was interested in graphic design. But after seeing the abundance of AI-generated art and how companies have been taking advantage of it, I fear the job will not be as dependable financially and will not be seen as valuable to others,” replied one student who initially was an aspiring arts major.
Key Findings:
- Training in AI: As the amount of high school training in how to use AI increased, students’ views toward AI grew more positive.
- College Majors and AI: Students planning to study art-related majors in college tended to be more concerned about AI taking away jobs compared to those planning computer science, math, engineering, health sciences, and technology majors.
- College Preparation: Overall, 60% of students agreed that knowing how to use AI would help prepare them for a college major or degree program.
The report is based on responses to an online survey administered to a random sample of 81,689 high school students from Grades 9-12 who registered for the December 2024 national ACT test. A total of 3,816 students responded to the survey. Read the full report to learn more about student perspectives on AI.
About ACT:
ACT is transforming college and career readiness pathways so that everyone can discover and fulfill their potential. Grounded in more than 65 years of research, ACT’s learning resources, assessments, research, and work-ready credentials are trusted by students, job seekers, educators, schools, government agencies, and employers in the U.S. and around the world to help people achieve their education and career goals at every stage of life. Visit us at www.act.org.
Contact: publicrelations@act.org