TLDR: Ohio State University has launched a groundbreaking “AI Fluency” initiative, requiring all incoming first-year students to study artificial intelligence. This program, part of President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr.’s “Education for Citizenship 2035” strategic plan, aims to equip every graduate with essential AI proficiencies, regardless of their major, to prepare them for an AI-driven future workforce.
Ohio State University is making a bold move to prepare its students for the future workforce by implementing a comprehensive “AI Fluency” initiative. Announced as a key component of President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr.’s “Education for Citizenship 2035” strategic plan, this program mandates that all incoming first-year students, starting in autumn 2025, will engage with artificial intelligence education. The goal is to ensure every Ohio State graduate is “bilingual” – fluent in both their chosen major and the application of AI within that field.
The initiative requires all freshmen to take a course in generative AI and participate in multiple workshops focused on real-world applications. These workshops will be integrated into the First Year Success Series, a required survey course designed to help students acclimate to college life. Additionally, an “Unlocking Generative AI” course will be offered and open to all majors, providing students with essential skills to interact effectively with AI, craft creative prompts, and explore AI’s societal impact.
President Carter emphasized the university’s responsibility to prepare students to lead in an AI-transformed world, stating, “Artificial intelligence is transforming the way we live, work, teach and learn. In the not-so-distant future, every job, in every industry, is going to be impacted in some way by AI.” He further highlighted the uniqueness of this approach, noting, “This is an approach that is so comprehensive, nobody else in the country is even attempting it.”
Beyond curriculum changes, Ohio State plans to significantly expand its AI expertise by hiring 100 additional AI experts, complementing the existing 300 specialists already working on artificial intelligence research and teaching. This expansion is supported by a $100 million campaign, partially funded by private donors, aimed at attracting and retaining leading scholars and growing the university’s research activity to $2 billion.
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The initiative is designed to provide graduates with not only technical AI skills but also a strong understanding of the ethical and secure use of AI tools across various disciplines, including healthcare, computer science, agriculture, and the humanities. This proactive step by Ohio State University aims to give its students a significant advantage in an ever-evolving technological landscape, where the number of job listings requiring AI skills has soared by over 600% in the last decade in the U.S., and by more than 100% in the last year alone.
