All about balance? How to prepare graduates for the AI-evolving world (of work)

31 March 2026

In this post, CRADLE PhD student Siham AbuKhalaf shares her key takeaways from our second seminar for 2026: Unknowable futures – Preparing graduates for an AI-evolving world (of work). Through a creative and thought-provoking presentation, the seminar considered the urgent question of how we might prepare our graduates for a world of work increasingly shaped by AI.

Unknowable Futures: Preparing Graduates for an AI-Evolving World (of Work)

CRADLE’s seminar Unknowable Futures: Preparing Graduates for an AI-Evolving World (of Work) centred on a critical question: in a world shaped by AI, what should higher education actually prepare students for?

Phill Dawson, Danni Hamilton, and Lauren Hansen present the seminar (Siham AbuKhalaf)

Professor Phill Dawson framed the discussion by highlighting a growing imbalance in higher education. While significant attention has been placed on assuring learning in the age of AI by ensuring students can demonstrate their own capabilities, he argued that this has overshadowed an equally important goal: preparing students for a world where AI is embedded in professional practice.

The challenge is not choosing between assurance and preparation, but holding both in balance. Graduates must not only prove what they know, but also navigate how work is changing.

Dr Danni Hamilton offered a more imaginative lens, inviting participants to “think like a witch”—to embrace experimentation, uncertainty, and creative risk-taking. Drawing on a 16-month cross-disciplinary project, she emphasised the importance of practitioner-led dialogue, where academics and industry professionals engage deeply with how AI is reshaping their fields. Rather than seeking neat solutions, this work foregrounded messy, relational, and practice-based ways of thinking about curriculum transformation.

Associate Professor Lauren Hansen translated these insights into curriculum design. She argued that preparing students is not about teaching specific tools or predicting future jobs, but about developing an emerging professional self. This involves grounding students in disciplinary ethics, fostering critical and creative thinking, and supporting reflection on their relationship with AI, particularly how and why they use it and what it means for their professional identity.

Lauren Hansen, Danni Hamilton, and Phill Dawson with some of the seminar posters (Jack Walton)

Missed the seminar? Catch up now!

About Siham

Siham AbuKhalaf is a PhD student with CRADLE. Her research is focusing on the intersection between authentic assessment, GenAI, and student motivation in higher education. Siham recently earned her master’s degree in educational leadership and policy and is a TEDx speaker, an active researcher with several publications, and a contributor to multiple academic conferences.