The value of a university in the AI era
By Dr. Jazli Aziz
The internet has long been a reservoir of knowledge ever since it became ubiquitous within our lives. The phrase “just Google it” became a common response when someone had a random question pop into their mind – a sign of just how easy it is to look up information online. And now, the age of artificial intelligence (AI) is well and truly here, making it so much easier to not just find information, but to have it aggregated, organised, and presented to us in ways that make learning easier. So much so, that questions surrounding the necessity of a university degree have been getting louder.
While it is indeed true that information is more accessible today than it has ever been, there appears to be a misconception that accessing information is the same as getting an education. It is not. And it has now become the responsibility of universities to show that a campus is no longer just a source of knowledge and information, but a place where wisdom, critical thought, and intellectual independence are nurtured.
The accessibility of information online is a massive boon for society. A lot of knowledge that decades ago would be confined to university classrooms, libraries, or encyclopaedias can now be accessed by anybody on their smartphones from anywhere. However, we must not assume that because information is democratised, formal education has become obsolete.
Having information at your fingertips is not the same as building expertise or understanding the true depth and significance of that information. This can be seen with many social media influencers who make bold claims in fields such as healthcare and science which are not evidence-based. Generative AI can equally produce inaccurate facts which many might find feasible and logical. This is why accepting information you find online as fact can be dangerous if you are unable to evaluate whether those facts are accurate, relevant, or ethically framed. And this is where we see the difference between information and education.
I’ve previously written about how the outcome of a university education is not merely a degree, but the graduates themselves. The experience, intellectual growth, and professional development gained over the three to four years it takes to obtain an education is what graduates come away with. And this epistemic reframing needs to be mirrored by society’s perceptions of a university’s mission. Higher education is not just about obtaining information or memorising facts. It’s about peer discussion, collaborative debates, interdisciplinary problem-solving, and cultivating individuals who will drive society forward.
Despite some arguing that universities are obsolete thanks to the internet and AI, I’d argue that those are the very reasons why a university education is indispensable. The very nature of the internet is that it is unguarded. Anybody can post anything without having the information vetted. This is why misinformation and disinformation are so prevalent in society. Education protects society from the perils of mis/disinformation by ensuring that learned individuals will always be around to share their expertise with the public. Additionally, while generative AI is good at summarising and organising knowledge, it only presents existing knowledge – it is not capable of creating new knowledge. Education creates individuals with in-depth expertise, skills, and intellect, allowing the discovery of new knowledge which pushes society forward.
A university education is not just a dissemination of knowledge. Students do not graduate merely with a collection of new facts. The cognitive growth, intellectual expansion, and capacity for deep and critical thinking are what graduates bring into society. It is commendable that many people find themselves learning new things on the internet every day, and indeed this curiosity should be encouraged. But it should not be assumed that learning off the internet has made a formal education obsolete. If anything, the role of universities has become far more critical. In a world where anyone can access information, society needs scholars, thinkers, and philosophers more than ever—not to tell us what to know, but to help us understand what it all means.
The author is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Oral and Craniofacial Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Malaya, and can be reached at jazliaziz@um.edu.my