Artificial intelligence (AI) offers plenty of opportunities in the job market, as many AI companies try to solve real-world problems through this field of practice. AI’s growth also comes with a wide range of options available to find the best majors for artificial intelligence.
When it comes to what degree in artificial intelligence should you pursue, keep reading to learn how to choose a major for artificial intelligence and know the possible AI career paths that are open to you after graduating.
Why Choose a Career in Artificial Intelligence
A career in artificial intelligence provides tech professionals with competitive pay, job security, and continuous learning and development. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the average annual salary for computer and AI professionals is $126,830. The salary goes as high as $194,430 for the top 10 percent earners in this field.
Apart from high earnings, you can also look forward to job security with a career in AI. With the high demand for professionals with AI skills, according to Statista, you can be assured that you’ll have a job and can even grow your career in the years to come. AI is becoming a broad field of study with diverse tracks where you can specialize like cognitive science, deep learning, and natural language processing.
Since AI is part of the digital world, it’s also fast-evolving. This evolution requires you to learn new things about artificial intelligence. So, if you love continuous learning, a career in AI would always challenge you to be updated with digital trends and new technologies that you can use for your professional growth.
Artificial Intelligence Job Outlook
As part of the computer and information scientists job category, AI occupations are expected to grow by 22 percent through 2030, according to BLS. This projection means that 7,200 jobs will be created in AI from 2020 to 2030.
Artificial Intelligence Job Satisfaction
Employees in an AI role, such as machine learning engineers, have shown great job satisfaction. In their reviews on Glassdoor, they rated their job a 4.1 out of 5 stars in work-life balance and 4 out of 5 in career opportunities. Most find that there’s plenty of opportunities to grow and strong competition to keep the work exciting.
Artificial Intelligence Salary Potential
| Career | Minimum Level of Education | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Software Architect | Bachelor’s degree | $151,000 |
| Machine Learning Engineer | Master’s degree | $112,266 |
| Business Intelligence Developer | Bachelor’s degree | $98,733 |
| Data Scientist | Bachelor’s degree | $97,254 |
| Robotics Engineer | Bachelor’s degree | $85,075 |
How to Choose a Major for Artificial Intelligence: Tips for Selecting the Right Artificial Intelligence Degree
Tip 1: Start with your interests
When choosing a major for artificial intelligence, think first of the subjects and topics that fascinate you. Reading AI and machine learning blogs can also inspire you and help you find your passion in AI. Do topics about machine learning techniques, human-computer interaction systems, or intelligent systems excite you? Check if they are included in the AI degree program you’re targeting.
Tip 2: Research to make an informed decision
Do your research to find out if a general curriculum would be enough to help kickstart your career in AI. You can also consider focusing on a degree specialization like deep learning techniques. In addition to this, research the schools that would best suit your criteria for your educational path to narrow down your search for the best major for artificial intelligence.
Tip 3: Look for STEM programs
STEM programs help you hone innovation and problem-solving skills, which are crucial for a career in AI. Thus, you might want to check out STEM programs closely related to AI to know what degree in artificial intelligence suits you. A lot of public and private institutions offer STEM undergraduate degrees, which you can take advantage of to prepare you for the scientific, technical, engineering, and mathematical skills needed for AI.
Tip 4: Connect with professionals
Talk to AI and machine learning professionals through LinkedIn, meetups, or conferences. Discuss your search for the best major for artificial intelligence. Maximize this chance to ask questions that will help you decide.
Tip 5: Get help in exploring your options
Most academic institutions have admissions support where you can discuss your education options, credit requirements, flexibility in credit hours, and program structures. This can be helpful whether you’re pursuing an on-campus or an online artificial intelligence program. You can also try to meet with academic advisors to consider majors for AI degree options or financial advisors to discuss your financing options.
What Degree for Artificial Intelligence: Best Majors for an Artificial Intelligence Career
Computer Engineering
You can complete a degree in computer engineering or computer and electrical engineering to pursue AI specializations like robotics, big data technologies, and the Internet of Things. In this AI major, you’ll get familiar with programming languages and techniques in computer engineering to make a career in robotics. You’ll also be able to tackle engineering challenges and solve human problems with digital solutions.
Associated Career Paths: Machine learning engineer, robotics engineer, data scientist
Levels of Education: Bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, doctorate
Computer Science
Computer science degree programs are the most preferred majors when it comes to getting AI jobs. It will help you build programming skills and enrich your knowledge of computing concepts and technologies. Here, you can boost your foundational skills before finding a niche in artificial intelligence. Most artificial intelligence in computer science majors excel in programming languages that land them artificial intelligence jobs.
Associated Career Paths: Computer systems analysts, network and computer systems administrators, computer and information systems managers
Levels of Education: Bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, doctorate
Information Systems
With an information systems major, you’ll be able to follow a career path in natural language processing, geospatial systems, and multi-agent systems. Students learn techniques and tools for data processing that are aligned with the advancements in AI.
Associated Career Paths: Information technology manager, business analyst, business intelligence developer
Levels of Education: Bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, doctorate
Machine Learning
Another popular choice for a major in AI is machine learning. Machine learning programs cover topics from machine learning terminology to concepts like data mining, pattern recognition, speech recognition, and big data. Machine learning harnesses both your computer science and statistics skillsets to enable a machine to learn tasks that improve a product or service.
Associated Career Paths: Machine learning engineer, ai specialist, data scientist
Levels of Education: Bachelor’s degree, master’s degree
Statistics
If you have a knack for numbers, you might find a statistics major more suitable to pursue jobs in data mining or data analysis. You’ll learn the statistical and computational methods that lay the foundation for data analysis techniques in machine learning and deep learning.
Associated Career Paths: Data analyst, data system, data mining researcher
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Levels of Education: Bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, doctorate
Other Artificial Intelligence Related Majors
Knowing how to choose a major for artificial intelligence entails checking all viable degree options and learning setups that work for you. Here are some of the other AI-related degrees you can explore either on-campus or online.
- Computer/Cyber Forensics
- Cyber Security
- Data Analytics
- Information Systems and Technologies
- Informatics and computing
- Health Informatics
- Mathematics
- Robotics
- Software Development
- Systems Security
Is a Career in Artificial Intelligence Right for Me?
Yes, a career in artificial intelligence is a great path that can give you job satisfaction and career development opportunities. In this field, you can improve lives through innovations like self-driving cars, health diagnosis technologies, and other intelligent autonomous systems. You can be part of great AI developments in healthcare, cyber security systems, and technological breakthroughs in brain-computer interfaces.
Best Major for Artificial Intelligence FAQ
Yes, some of the best colleges and national universities have an undergraduate program in AI. For instance, Rice University is a private university with AI and machine learning departments. Colorado State University at Fort Collins offers computer science, artificial intelligence, and machine learning majors. Purdue University offers online graduate degree programs for artificial intelligence.
Other schools may offer a computer science program with a concentration or specialized track in artificial intelligence or robotics intelligence. One example of this is the Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Computer Science at Oregon State University.
Yes, artificial intelligence is a good major for gaining well-rounded skills and pursuing a fulfilling career. AI has fields of study that are significant in today’s digital world, such as security and privacy, vision and robotics, computational biology, and software systems.
Yes, AI jobs are in demand for the upcoming years and even decades. The field of AI is only starting to grow as machine learning is becoming closer to the human mind. The impact of artificial intelligence will expand even more with these advancements. There are diverse opportunities in artificial intelligence.
Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Stanford University offer the best AI programs and computer science degrees at different levels. Stanford University even has its Artificial Intelligence Laboratory that’s open for both undergraduate and graduate students. You can also study AI in an artificial intelligence bootcamp if you want to enter the workforce in less time.
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