Don’t tell young people to walk away from university. For many, it’s the only way

May 31, 2026 — 7:30pm

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I’ve spent my career in university classrooms and online learning environments. I’ve watched students arrive uncertain and leave capable, articulate and ready for the world. I’ve seen the moment a first-in-family student realises they belong.

I’ve also spent over a decade dealing with academic misconduct and, more recently, at the centre of what generative AI is doing to higher education.

So yes – the problems being described right now are real. But what concerns me more than cheating is what we are starting to say in response to it.

Kylie Moore-Gilbert wrote in this masthead last week that she had advised her stepdaughter to think twice about going to university. That is advice she is entitled to give. She is right that AI has disrupted how we teach, assess and verify learning. It has.

Where the argument goes wrong is when that personal advice is extended to a generation: wait, opt out, come back later when things have settled. That is not neutral. It risks doing real harm.

Because for many young Australians, university is not an optional extra. It is the only route through to their chosen profession.

If you want to be a nurse, a teacher, an engineer, a social worker then........

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