College Degrees Maintain Relevance Despite AI Workforce Integration
Rita Finkel, co-president of the Armory Foundation and director of The Armory College Prep program, has published an opinion piece in EdSurge asserting that college degrees continue to hold significant value even as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more prevalent in the workplace. According to a 2025 Gallup survey cited in the article, the use of AI in the workplace among U.S. employees nearly doubled from 21% in 2023 to 40% in 2025. The article also references analysis from the Federal Reserve and labor economists, which indicates that from 2000 to 2025, workers with bachelor's degrees consistently experienced lower unemployment rates compared to those with only a high school diploma, with a gap of at least 2.3 percentage points. Finkel emphasizes that degrees from competitive colleges foster critical thinking and the ability to understand and shape ethical AI use. 
