Speaking on a panel titled “The Future of Work: Jobs and Skills in an AI-Powered World” on 21 May 2026, the second day of the Asia Tech x Summit held at Capella Singapore, SMU President Professor Lily Kong said that with fresh graduates expected to enter the workforce already equipped with the relevant experience, universities need to focus on preparing students for the “third-year job”. Prof Kong noted that this is because the “first two years are going to be taken over by agentic AI”. She urged educators to increase their focus on intentionally cultivating human qualities in the age of AI and added that such values are often shaped outside the classroom through co-curricular activities, community service work and global exposure opportunities. One way for employers to recognise these skills is through a co-curricular transcript, which SMU has begun providing since 2025, that lists qualities and characteristics that students have cultivated.