Giving career advice to kids has never been harder

Get hyperfocused on networking, double major and land a job, DesCoteaux now says.

“You don’t know which lever you’re going to have to pull," says DesCoteaux, who is steeped in artificial intelligence in her own job at a logistics company.

The AI boom’s effect on the job market for young adults is creating new anxiety for parents. Many don’t know how to advise teens on what to study in college—or whether to even go.

Computer science isn’t the safe bet it used to be, so a lot of students are majoring in business, says Allison Slater Tate, director of college counseling at a private prep school in Florida. “There’s a panic over careers and employment," she says. “Everyone is looking for a guarantee."

She and other experts say students should consider liberal arts degrees because employers value critical thinking skills. For some, the future of work has never been less clear.

“The most important thing we can advise kids to do is to learn how to learn and how to think, because the only thing we can do over computers is to be human," Slater Tate says. She sees growing demand for philosophy and art history majors in banking and elsewhere as companies seek workers who can apply critical thinking across disciplines.

‘Network, network, network’

With her mother’s advice in mind, Kendra DolanDesCoteaux is trying to do it all in the name of maximizing career options. The 20-year-old was planning to major in communications at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She has added a second major in sociology while holding down a part-time job helping students with food, housing and finances, plus other gigs around the campus. Using any leftover free time, she attends networking events with professional organizations.

Kendra DolanDesCoteaux is taking her mother Paulette DesCoteaux’s advice to double major and work part time to boost her employability.

Kendra says she was initially reluctant to follow her mom’s advice but she now realizes it’s good to have options. Adding a major in sociology, she says, could prepare her for becoming a human rights lawyer if she decides to go to law school.

“Human rights will be really important as AI rises," she says.

Paulette says she feels badly for pushing her daughter so hard, but worries Kendra will otherwise be left behind.

“I said you better fill up your bucket with a ton of experience this summer with whatever you can—paid or unpaid—and you have to network, network, network," Paulette says.

More than ever, having work experience during college is critical to success beyond, because it can set graduates apart from other candidates competing for fewer jobs, says Jeffrey Selingo, a former higher-education reporter and editor who has written several books about college, including “Dream School."

“That can mean part-time work or undergraduate research or internships," he says. “The more you have of that in college, the better off you’ll be after."

‘AI is coming’

Darryl Coleman used to encourage his son, Jordan, to learn coding, since he liked playing videogames. But Jordan, now age 19, wanted to work with his hands. In June, he completed a heating, ventilation and air conditioning certificate from a vocational school. He now has a job with benefits—and no college debt.

Darryl Coleman (in blue) with his wife, Beth, and their twins, Kayla and Hannah. Their son, Jordan, chose the ‘AI-proof’ HVAC industry as a career path.

Coleman sees that as an AI-proof career path, especially since AI data centers need cooling. A forklift operator in Cincinnati, Coleman is trying to get his twin 11-year-old daughters interested in AI. Even though it will be a while before they need to decide what to do after high school, he wants them to get comfortable using the fast-evolving technology. He used an AI app to create a model of the solar system, since one daughter is interested in astronomy. He also uses Gemini Storybook to help the girls create characters and stories.

“The first step for me is to show them that AI is something fun," he says. “But I want them to use technology to learn and be more productive."

It doesn’t help that students are hearing mixed messages about AI. Teachers often instruct students not to use AI for homework or to write essays; meanwhile, their parents are saying they need to know how to use it to find a place in the workforce of the future.

“When we say AI at school is bad, we prepare kids to fail," says Sarah Hernholm, who runs an entrepreneurship program for teens. She recently surveyed clients about what they want from her program. Courses in AI readiness were among parents’ top requests.

Matthew Miner, a financial adviser in Beaverton, Ore., says high schools aren’t preparing students for what’s to come. He’s encouraging his 17-year-old daughter and 16-year-old stepson to get real estate or mortgage licenses. He and his wife own some rental properties and he wants to get them thinking about careers in real estate.

“I tell them, ‘Look, AI is coming, and it’s good to have skills that AI can’t easily replace,’ " he says.

Write to Julie Jargon at Julie.Jargon@wsj.com