The world of work is changing fast.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, industrial digitalisation (sometimes called ‘the fourth industrial revolution’ or Industry 4.0) was radically disrupting whole sectors of the economy, by automating processes that were previously carried out manually. And the pandemic has not halted Industry 4.0, it has accelerated it.

As the world has moved online in response to COVID-19, so businesses have discovered they have to automate and digitise in order to survive. As a result, in just a few years’ time, computers and robots, with the aid of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), will carry out many of the tasks that humans perform today – not just in manufacturing, but also in service industries like accountancy and retail, and even in professions like medicine and law.

Most of today’s manual jobs, and many of today’s professional jobs, won’t exist in 20 years’ time.

In their place, new jobs will be created. The United Nations estimates that 60% of children at school today will earn their living doing jobs that don’t yet exist – jobs we can’t yet imagine, but which will certainly require new skills and competencies, like data analysis. Uniquely human abilities that computers and robots cannot replicate – like creativity, critical thinking and teamwork – will be even more important than they are now.

That is why tertiary studies are the best pathway to support your future success.

Whether you choose technical and vocational education and training (TVET) or higher education (HE), university will teach you the skills you need to succeed – not just today, but tomorrow and throughout the whole of your career. Unlike school, university teaches you how to think, not what to think – to prepare you for a future that will be very different from today. School gives you the right answers, but university encourages you to ask the right questions – to develop your critical thinking skills.

TVET and HE courses train you for today’s jobs while also preparing you for tomorrow’s jobs.

None of us has a crystal ball – we cannot predict the future. Nobody could have predicted the COVID-19 pandemic, nor the way in which it would disrupt our economies and societies. The only thing that is certain about the future is that it will see further disruptions to our lives and livelihoods. The people who will succeed in an uncertain world are those with the flexibility, adaptability and curiosity to discover and exploit the new opportunities that open up.

If you want a pathway to future success, you need to learn to embrace change.

At FNU, all our courses are informed by the latest thinking – looking to the future – but rooted in the real-world, with industry experience a hallmark of our TVET and HE programmes. By studying with us, you will prepare yourself for a fulfilling career, and develop the skills you need to survive and thrive in a changing world.

Professor Toby Wilkinson,

Vice-Chancellor,

Fiji National University.