How can education keep up when the workplace is changing faster than ever?
A recent Columbia University School of Professional Studies (SPS) webinar set out to consider this question on the minds of students, educators, and working professionals who are considering learning new skills to meet the demands of the day.
The event, If the Market Changed Today, Would Your Education Keep Up, moderated by Dr. Tiffany Hughes, associate dean of graduate programs, opened with a conversation between Dr. Hughes and Dr. Erik Nelson, senior associate dean of academic affairs, before expanding into a discussion with SPS faculty who are simultaneously educators and active practitioners in their fields.
Nelson described SPS as a school built to listen and evolve, drawing on employers, industry leaders, alumni, faculty practitioners, students, labor-market data, and changes in professional practice to understand where skill gaps are emerging. The goal is to anticipate change, not react to it. “Programs should never be static,” he said. “I would say that keeping up is no longer enough. Our responsibility is to prepare students not just for the jobs that exist today, but for jobs, industries, and challenges that may not exist yet. This requires a mindset of continuous innovation and continuous learning.”
That philosophy comes to life through the SPS scholar-practitioner model. Faculty are active leaders who work across all sectors, bringing current challenges and emerging trends directly into the classroom. Students learn alongside peers who come from different industries and career stages, and learning from each others’ professional experiences becomes part of the curriculum. “Being able to kind of A-B test, and share experiences of what's working, what is not, through an academic lens, but also as practitioners. I think it's worth its weight in gold,” said Ameen Amin, lecturer in the Wealth Management program and senior vice president at Morgan Stanley.
AI was a recurring subject throughout the discussion, but the conversation avoided both hype and panic. Benjamin Kinsella, a lecturer in the Applied Analytics program at SPS and former OpenAI strategist, acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding AI while urging students to focus on enduring capabilities. As technology makes information easier to access, he argued, the differentiators become judgment, problem-solving, and the ability to create value. In addition to learning new tools, professionals must be able to think critically about when and how to use them. As he put it, students should be asking themselves: “How do I problem-solve? How do I deliver value?”
Lauren Glover, a lecturer in the Strategic Communication program and managing director of marketing at Blue Seedling, focused on the importance of practice. Communication, leadership, and decision-making improve through repetition, feedback, and reflection. She described SPS classrooms as spaces where students can test ideas, receive detailed feedback, and build confidence in a way that is often difficult to find in the workplace. “We create this container for students,” she said, describing an environment where students can rehearse, revise, and improve. “In many organizations, there is no manager available to help someone prepare a presentation or coach them through a difficult communication challenge. The SPS classroom provides that opportunity.”
Glover also highlighted the School’s Pedagogical Lab, a program designed specifically to enable SPS faculty to hone teaching skills. The initiative reflects a commitment to the idea that faculty should continue learning, too. Through shared research, peer feedback, and experimentation with new teaching methods, instructors continually refine their practice. The result is a culture in which innovation applies to both what is taught and how it is taught.
For Shaba R. Keys, lecturer in the Nonprofit Management program and president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Harlem, curiosity is one of the most important leadership traits students can develop. Her guiding principle is “curiosity over certainty.” As boundaries between sectors continue to blur, she argued, leaders must be able to engage different perspectives and build relationships across organizations and disciplines. “Build relationships before you need them,” she said. “Everything is relational. The most effective leaders are those that are investing in cultivating partnerships, collaboration, and building trust.”
Ameen Amin described the current moment as a profound technological shift. His advice was not to resist change but to engage with it. “We go from the age of intelligence as the separator to the age of agency,” he said. “Investing in yourself, I think, is the ultimate use of time and capital and effort.”
As access to information becomes more widespread, the ability to exercise judgment, take initiative, and adapt quickly will become increasingly valuable. For students and professionals alike, success will depend less on what they know today and more on their capacity to keep learning tomorrow.
Taken together, the discussion made a compelling case for professional education as an engine of adaptability. In a world where the shelf life of knowledge is shrinking, the most valuable education may not be one that provides all the answers, but one that equips people to keep asking the right questions. At SPS, that commitment to continuous learning, real-world practice, and intellectual curiosity has become the curriculum itself.
As Ameen Amin observed, the professional world is facing a significant wave of technological change. No one knows exactly where it will lead, but the most important thing, he said, “is to learn how to surf.”
About the Programs:
Columbia University’s Master of Science in Applied Analytics prepares students with the practical data and leadership skills to succeed. The program combines in-depth knowledge of data analytics with the leadership, management, and communication principles and tactics necessary to impact decision-making across industries and organizational functions.
Learn more about the program here. The program is available full-time and part-time, online and on-campus.
Columbia University’s M.S. in Nonprofit Management prepares graduates for leadership roles within mission-driven organizations in a wide variety of contexts, including global and community nonprofits, foundations, education, healthcare, the arts, or as fundraising and development experts.
Learn more about the program here. The program is available part-time, full-time, on-campus, and online.
Columbia University's M.S. in Strategic Communication program empowers current and aspiring leaders to shape the future through strategic communication. It is designed to respond to the urgent need for global perspectives, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making at all levels of organization. The interdisciplinary curriculum emphasizes audience-centered strategy and digital competency. Distinguished scholar-practitioner faculty bring real-world experience into the classroom and provide a learning experience that is immediately relevant in the workplace.
The program is available full-time on campus or part-time online with residencies. The part-time format is ideal for experienced full-time professionals based in or outside the New York metropolitan area. Learn more about the program here.
Columbia University’s Master of Professional Studies in Wealth Management program is a 16-month online program with asynchronous instruction specially designed to accommodate working professionals. It is taught by distinguished faculty with deep applied experience in their respective fields. Additionally, it is a CFP Board Registered Program designed to help students meet the educational requirement for CFP® certification.
The application deadline for the M.P.S. in Wealth Management program is May 1. Learn more about the program here.
