Survey: 66 Percent of Teens Concerned They Might Not Be Able to Find a Good Job as Adults Due to Artificial Intelligence "A.I."

Junior Achievement Survey Finds 92 Percent of Teens Want to Learn More about AI in High School

Colorado Springs, CO – In recent months, there have been reports of Artificial Intelligence "AI" making advances in competencies related to occupational fields millions of people depend on for jobs, including graphic design, writing, content creation, and even law and medicine. This has raised questions about the impact AI could have on the future employability of millions.

In response to this, Junior Achievement USA conducted a survey of teens that shows 66 percent are concerned that they will not be able to find a good job as adults due to AI, with 32 percent being "Very" or "Extremely" concerned. Despite this, most teens, 71%, think recent technological innovations are "a good thing," and virtually all, 92%, would be interested in courses in school that promote skills related to AI. The survey of 1,005 teens between 13 and 17 was conducted by Big Village between February 28 - March 5, 2023.

"We at Junior Achievement believe this is a watershed moment in technology, and it's going to impact the future of work," said Jack E. Kosakowski, President and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. "Every 10 to 15 years, we have a technological breakthrough that negatively impacts some jobs while creating new industries and career fields. We saw this with personal computers in the early 80s, the Internet in the mid-90s, smart devices and social media about 15 years ago, and now AI. That's why Junior Achievement is engaging partners in the business community to support the development of new learning experiences to educate young people about AI."

Organizations or individuals interested in partnering with Junior Achievement on this or other initiatives can reach out through newmedia@ja.org.

Additional survey findings include:

- 86% of survey respondents noted they were "Interested" STEM, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math", topics in school, with 57% being "Very" or "Extremely Interested".

- Despite their concerns about the impact of AI on future employment, 79% of teens believe they will find a good-paying and rewarding job as adults.

A full summary of the results can be found at https://jausa.ja.org/news/critical-issues.

Methodology

This Youth CARAVAN survey was conducted by Big Village among a sample of 1,005 13-17-year-olds. This survey was live on February 28 - March 5, 2023.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have volunteered to participate in online surveys and polls. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to multiple sources of error, including, but not limited to sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. It is nationally representative with set quotas based on census data. The 1,005 completes are all who qualified and completed based on the demographic quota requirements. The MoE is +/- 3.1%.

About Junior Achievement USA®

Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches more than 3.3 million students per year in 102 markets across the United States as part of 12.5 million students served by operations in more than 100 other countries worldwide. Junior Achievement USA is a member of JA Worldwide. For more information, visit www.ja.org.

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