THE FUTURE OF WORK AT THE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
Work is changing. We’ll get you ready.
Connected to how work actually happens
The future of work
AI, automation, demographic shifts and economic pressure are reshaping work faster than most institutions can keep up. The College of Business prepares students, organizations and communities to meet that change practically, ethically and inclusively. We study the future of work, and we help people get ready for it.
Every industry runs on business decisions, whether it’s wine, robotics or healthcare. We partner with colleges across Oregon State — engineering, agriculture and pharmacy — to build business programs with real industry depth, connecting what students learn to how work actually happens in the fields they’re entering.
THE SHIFT
What’s changing
Technology, especially AI, continues to reshape jobs, organizations and entire industries, redefining what people need from work and from education. The result is a job market that is in rapid change: from early-career roles to senior analytical research and leadership thinking. The people, organizations and regions that adapt fastest will pull ahead.
We help people succeed in the future that’s already here.
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Why it matters
As work changes, the people who successfully navigate change — students, employers, whole regions — have the most to gain. Business schools can react slowly or help lead this transition. The College of Business is choosing to lead. What we teach keeps pace with how work is really being rebuilt.
For employers and organizations:
The pace of technological change is outstripping talent pipelines. Organizations need partners who can help them navigate workforce transformation and build inclusive, future-ready teams.
For individuals and learners:
Career readiness today means real experience and the ability to keep adapting — not just static credentials. Our students have the mindset that skills evolve over a lifetime.
For communities:
Adaptable economies grow and thrive; those that can’t adapt fall behind. Grounded in Oregon State’s land-grant mission, we work to extend opportunity across all of Oregon, from urban centers to rural areas
OUR APPROACH
Meeting the moment
Helping all of us navigate this change takes more than any single course or program. It takes a connected set of capabilities:
- Skills that matter. Technology fluency, adaptability, and judgment built into education at every stage — from the undergraduate core to professional learning.
- Real experience. Hands-on, real-world work that builds confidence, networks, and career readiness before graduation.
- Knowledge that’s usable. Rigorous research, translated into practical guidance and tools for employers, workers and policymakers.
- Strong partnerships. Deep, ongoing collaboration with the employers and communities navigating these changes alongside us.
PROOF, NOT PROMISES
Our work in action
This isn’t a plan for later. It’s happening now — here’s what it means for you.
MEET THE PEOPLE
Featured faculty
Our faculty are shaping how the college works with AI — building tools, studying its effects and leading on responsible use.
Jonathan Kalodimos, Finance
Building an AI-supported oral-exam tool that gives students immediate, rubric-based feedback — and selected for Google’s Co-Scientist pilot alongside MIT and Stanford.
Laura Rees, Management
Developed a new model for what happens to employee wellbeing when humans and AI team up — helping organizations anticipate the effects before they arrive.
Inara Scott, Senior Advisor for Strategy & Innovation
Internationally recognized for her work on responsible AI in education, leading AI pedagogy and ethics training across OSU and beyond — and helping stand up the Future of Work Exchange.
FOR STUDENTS
Hands-on learning
Graduate with real experience.
Learn by doing
Experiential learning is required in every program, so you finish with real-world work behind you.
Solve real problems
MBA students take on employer-sponsored capstones, and first-year students build and run actual businesses.
Work for real clients
Through our centers of research excellence, students run real client projects on real deadlines and with real internal data.
FOR EVERY LEARNER
Curriculum & teaching
Build skills that matter now — wherever you are in your career.
AI is in the core
AI is a powerful, imperfect tool set — and using it well is its own skill. Across the undergraduate core, students learn how and when to put it to work to sharpen decisions and work more effectively.
Business with an AI lens
Two new STEM-designated master's degrees prepare you to put data and AI to work where business decisions get made. Business Analytics & Applied AI turns analysis into results the business can act on. Information Systems connects technology, data and the way organizations actually work.
Keep growing
Continuing & Professional Education offers self-paced and custom AI courses, an AI-for-HR certificate, and free webinars.
SHAPING THE FIELD
Recognized research
Our faculty are studying and shaping the future of work.
Building AI for the real world
Faculty are building, testing and deploying innovative AI tools — drawing national recognition, from industry collaborations to educational assessment tools.
The human side
We’re publishing research on how AI reshapes jobs, teams, and wellbeing in leading journals and shaping the conversation on mainstream media platforms.
Heard beyond academia
The Thought Leadership Series platforms our research — including sessions on AI — for practitioners and the public.
PROOF IT’S CONNECTED
Community & industry
Connecting the future of work to industry and to Oregon.
Guided by industry
Industry advisory councils keep our curriculum and skills current with what employers actually need.
Real projects in our centers
Five Centers of Excellence run sponsored, real-world projects with industry — faculty and students working on live problems.
Rooted in Oregon
Research and engagement partnerships reach across the state, supporting inclusive economic development.
Planning for a fast pace
This is both a sprint and a marathon. This work is growing so fast, and we're expanding our footprint as we go, developing new opportunities for students, employers and community members — guided by faculty research and what we learn along the way.
Interested in the future of work? Employers, community partners and others who’d like to connect can get in touch. Looking for a speaker on AI and the future of work for your organization or business? Our faculty speak to chambers, employers, and community groups — reach out and we’ll help make the connection.
For media inquiries, please contact Inara Scott.