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How Artificial Intelligence (AI) Is Changing University Hiring

Written by Vipin P V | Mar 7, 2019 9:30:00 AM

According to a report from the Undercover Recruiter, we can already expect Artificial Intelligence (AI) to replace 16% of all jobs within the next ten years. It may sound like bad news, but it’s not. One of the things that most people get wrong about this issue is that they imagine we will suddenly lose our jobs. While most of us will have to make some changes and reconsider our choices, the truth of the matter is that AI will give us the gift of time and enable us to improve and become more efficient at what we do.

Now, that you are probably more confident in your prospect in an AI dominated world, here’s an application you might have overlooked: companies are starting to implement machine-learning solutions to streamline the hiring process.

Too Much Data to Handle

The job seeking and hiring process have suffered a huge transformation over time. Just think about the fact that a few dozen years ago, getting a job depended almost completely on either personally knowing the employer or having a recommendation from someone trustworthy. Then, along with the internet, applications slowly moved online and applying for your dream job become as easy as filling a form online.

However, the process became so easy that suddenly, companies were receiving hundreds or thousands of applications, with no means of effectively figuring out the best possible candidate.

That is where AI can come in and make a difference – finding out just how much a candidate is worth and eliminating all the time recruiters and hiring managers waste on scanning resumes and portfolios. And when we’re dealing with an academic environment, choosing the right people is even more important.

How Universities Can Benefit from AI during the Recruiting Process

University employees essentially help shape the minds of young people. So, it is crucial that the recruiting process be very strict. A serious recruitment process can take a long time, from carefully reading the applicant’s resume and references, to contacting the reference sources, conducting preliminary interviews and even organizing testing sessions.

Artificial intelligence helps recruiters and hiring managers to target candidates that are qualified enough for the job and sort them out from all of the other ones that could be applying despite being aware of their lack of qualifications. Machines could now sort by age, education, location, or even spending habits and hobbies. And everything could be done without even exchanging one word with the candidate. Convenient? We believe so.

Moreover, artificial intelligence could also solve the problem of bias many companies are struggling with, as they would be completely objective and examine only the candidates’ stats. Everybody knows that a good recommendation will open a lot of doors, and that is true even in the academic world. And it’s only natural – as humans, we cannot survive without communicating with each other, and without creating bonds between us. Pushing candidates in front of others while disregarding the actual qualifications is something very common in any part of the world, but artificial intelligence could be the end of the bias.

For many of us, the rise of AI can seem intimidating, as unlike us, robots don’t need to sleep, eat, take breaks, or even get a salary. However, using AI can turn out to have a tremendous beneficial impact, as tedious, time-consuming tasks can slowly be eliminated, making space for more actual interaction between people.