Will communications professors be replaced by AI?
Updated
Communications professors score 53 out of 100 for AI exposure. AI helps with 54% of their task time, and they stay in charge. AI can do another 14%. 32% needs a person.
- 14% AI can do it
- 54% AI helps
- 32% Needs a person
High exposure
Higher than 81% of the 923 jobs we scored.
Task by task
We graded 22 tasks, most exposed first. AI can do 3 of them, helps with 12 and leaves 7 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records. Attendance and grade record keeping is routine digital data entry. | 82% AI can do it |
| Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts. AI drafts syllabi, assignments and handouts; instructor edits. | 72% AI can do it |
| Compile bibliographies of specialized materials for outside reading assignments. AI compiles source lists quickly; instructor verifies citations. | 68% AI can do it |
| Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers. AI can draft rubric-based feedback and grades; instructor reviews. | 60% AI helps |
| Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others. AI drafts exam questions and auto-grades objective items. | 55% AI helps |
| Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media. AI aids literature review, analysis and drafting; researcher leads. | 55% AI helps |
| Write grant proposals to procure external research funding. AI drafts proposal sections; strategy and funder fit stay human. | 50% AI helps |
| Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as public speaking, media criticism, and oral traditions. AI helps build lecture content; delivery stays human. | 45% AI helps |
| Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction. AI can suggest curriculum revisions; faculty decide and approve. | 45% AI helps |
| Select and obtain materials and supplies, such as textbooks. Textbook research and ordering partly online; choices stay human. | 45% AI helps |
Show the other 12 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Keep abreast of developments and technological advances in the communication field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences. AI speeds literature scanning and summaries; conferences stay human. | 45% AI helps |
| Perform administrative duties, such as serving as department head. AI handles reports and memos; leadership and people decisions stay human. | 35% AI helps |
| Provide professional consulting services to government or industry. AI aids analysis and writing; client work needs human presence. | 35% AI helps |
| Participate in student recruitment, registration, and placement activities. Registration admin is digital; recruiting events remain in person. | 30% AI helps |
| Advise students on academic and vocational curricula and on career issues. AI supplies program and career info; advising judgement stays personal. | 25% AI helps |
| Supervise undergraduate or graduate teaching, internship, and research work. Supervising students is live mentoring with limited AI help. | 20% Needs a person |
| Collaborate with colleagues to address teaching and research issues. Collaboration with colleagues is mostly live meetings and discussion. | 18% Needs a person |
| Serve on academic or administrative committees that deal with institutional policies, departmental matters, and academic issues. Committee service is live deliberation with colleagues. | 18% Needs a person |
| Maintain regularly scheduled office hours to advise and assist students. Office hours are live one-on-one student interaction. | 15% Needs a person |
| Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions. Live discussion facilitation depends on in-room human interaction. | 12% Needs a person |
| Act as advisers to student organizations. Advising student organizations requires in-person presence and relationships. | 12% Needs a person |
| Participate in campus and community events. Attending campus and community events requires physical presence. | 5% Needs a person |
How communications professors compare
All jobs (923)
Educational instruction and library (62)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $78,580 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 29,420 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- +2.1% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Moderate live seminar discussions in the classroom
- Verify AI compiled citations against primary sources
- Design grading rubrics and review AI feedback in Learning management system LMS
- Lead research publication with original analysis in Microsoft Word
- Chair academic committees on curriculum and institutional policy
- Advise student organizations and media productions in person
Safer roles nearby
5 related jobs with lower scores.
Questions about communications professors and AI
Will AI replace communications professors?
Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours of a communications professor go to tasks AI can already do, mostly maintaining student attendance and grade records and preparing course materials. Leading live discussions, advising students and serving on committees stays with people because it needs a person in the room.
Which tasks is AI taking over for communications professors?
Record keeping scores 82 on the exposure scale, the highest of any task, because attendance and grade entry is routine digital data work. Preparing syllabi and handouts scores 72, with AI drafting and the instructor editing. Compiling bibliographies scores 68 because AI assembles source lists quickly while the instructor verifies citations.
Which parts of the job stay human for communications professors?
Participating in campus events scores 5 on the exposure scale, the lowest listed, because it requires physical presence. Facilitating classroom discussions scores 12 and office hours score 15, since both depend on live interaction with students. Committee service scores 18 because it is live deliberation with colleagues.
How can communications professors stay valuable with AI?
Shift grading time toward rubric design and feedback review in the Learning management system LMS. Keep moderating live seminars and holding office hours, since those tasks score low on exposure. Verify every AI compiled citation in Microsoft Word or Google Docs before assigning readings. Publish research with your analysis, using AI only for literature review and drafting.
Related jobs
Next steps for communications professors
Check which roles in your team AI can take on
We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first.
Related topics
- Jobs AI can't replaceRoustabouts score lowest, at 6.
- Jobs most at risk from AIProofreaders score highest, at 76.
- High-paying jobs with low AI exposurePediatric surgeons earn a median $559,030 and score 29.
- Entry-level jobs with low AI exposureRoustabouts need little prior training and score 6.
- Jobs AI speeds up the mostAI helps with 98% of the task time for health informatics specialists.
- AI and jobs in Malta15 iGaming roles graded task by task.
- Skills that keep work humanThe skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.
- Jobs A to ZEvery job we score, by first letter.
- AI exposure by industryAverage scores for 22 job groups.
- Write a CV screening software can readHow applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.
- AI for businessesThe tasks to automate first in each team and industry.
- How we score AI exposureThe grading, the weights and every source.