Humanities studies take back seat as AI surges ahead

Advocates for liberal arts

Other academics, however, warned against sidelining the role of the humanities needed to cultivate critical thinking and cultural literacy.

Song Baoliang, vice president of Wuhan University, told China News Service that the development of AI has impacted almost all disciplines. However, he believes the humanities will live on, as they are significant in understanding language and personal spiritual pursuits.

"I often tell my students that interest is the most important thing. No matter which major they choose, AI cannot replace a human's role," he said. "What we can do is develop ourselves, learn more, embrace AI and new technologies, and integrate AI into different majors for upgrades."

Feng Yuanzheng, head of the Beijing People's Art Theater, said he used DeepSeek to write a film script, which he considered of reasonable quality.

"However, the script lacked warmth, human warmth, and it is not what I want," he said. "I think technology is limitless, yet it is limited in how people use it, not the other way around."

Zhou, from the University of Macau, said top universities still need to maintain a certain number of humanities majors.

Elite humanities talent is irreplaceable in the age of AI. Many technology companies hire humanities graduates for product design and user research, he said, adding that Deep-Seek had also hired liberal arts majors.

With the emergence of AI, job requirements may become more demanding, yet the demand for talented humanities graduates remains. Top-notch humanities talents are characterized by their wide-ranging knowledge, erudition, self-motivation, strong communication and coordination skills, as well as a high sense of responsibility, Zhou said.

It is difficult to accurately predict what majors will be in demand and develop in the future. The emphasis has moved from big data to the current focus on AI, both hot majors, which is a reflection of the continuous evolution in higher education demand, he said.

"There are indeed concerns about overheating in the current construction of AI programs, a point with which I strongly agree. The key lies not in chasing trends but in consolidating the quality of education," Zhou said.

Funding and resources are not the core issues for the development of higher education in China, he said.

"The central question is: 'What should the curriculum framework be? How can we do better?' This goes beyond the simple dichotomy of liberal arts and sciences; the core issue is whether there can be high-quality higher education."

zoushuo@chinadaily.com.cn