Employers report AI skills gap
New global research from Pearson and AWS finds 53% of employers say they struggle to find graduates who are 'AI-ready.' The study highlights a reported mismatch between employer expectations for practical AI skills and the abilities of recent graduates. (prnewswire.com)
More than half of employers surveyed by Pearson and Amazon Web Services said they cannot find graduates with the artificial intelligence skills they need. (prnewswire.com) The study, released April 13, 2026, drew on more than 2,700 survey responses from learners, higher education leaders, and employers in the United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Pearson and Amazon Web Services said independent research firm PSB Insights conducted the work. (pearson.com) The gap in the survey runs in both directions: 78% of higher education leaders said they believe they are meeting employer expectations, while only 28% of employers said universities are keeping pace with artificial intelligence-driven change. Just 14% of current graduates said they had reached a high level of proficiency using artificial intelligence tools in a professional workflow. (prnewswire.com) Artificial intelligence here does not mean only writing prompts into chatbots. Pearson defines “AI readiness” as the ability to work alongside intelligent systems using applied skills, judgment, communication, adaptability, and ethical decision-making. (pearson.com) The report says the pressure is rising because entry-level work is changing faster than university curriculum cycles. Across the six countries, 67% of learners, higher education leaders, and employers said workplace change driven by artificial intelligence is very fast or extremely fast, and 66% said they expect it to accelerate. (pearson.com) Pearson and Amazon Web Services argue the problem is structural, not just a missing course or certificate. Their framework identifies six points where graduates fall behind: pace, connection, capability, governance, experience, and skills. (aws.amazon.com) One of those weak points is industry ties. Pearson says partnerships with employers rank last among higher education investment priorities, at 39%, even as schools and companies say they want closer alignment between classroom learning and workplace demands. (pearson.com) Amazon Web Services has been pushing artificial intelligence training beyond universities for several years. In November 2023, Amazon said it would provide free artificial intelligence skills training to 2 million people globally by 2025, citing separate research that found 73% of employers prioritized hiring artificial intelligence-skilled talent. (aboutamazon.com) Pearson and Amazon Web Services said they will publish six country-specific reports in the coming months. The broader message from the April 2026 release is that access to artificial intelligence tools alone has not translated into graduates who can use them effectively at work. (aws.amazon.com)
