As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to reshape workplaces, classrooms and daily life, Emory College of Arts and Sciences professor Yana Bromberg is giving first-year students the tools to understand this rapidly-evolving technology with her class, “College in the Age of AI.” The class is designed to introduce students to both the promises and challenges of AI, helping them build critical awareness and thoughtful perspectives from the very start of their college careers.
Now in its second year, the course examines the fundamentals of machine learning and large language models (LLMs) in a way accessible to students from diverse academic backgrounds. Alongside technical basics, students explore ethical concerns such as bias and fairness in algorithms, and consider how AI can support personalized learning, uphold academic integrity and even enable early interventions for student success.
The course also encourages students to reflect on the broader societal and cultural implications of rapidly advancing AI tools and technology.
As a computational biologist, Bromberg uses AI and protein language models to study how microbial genomes work. But in her class, she wants students to learn not just how AI works, but also where it came from and how it affects society.
“The hope for this course is to calm the students down because there is a lot of media hype that AI will replace jobs,” Bromberg says. “We do much better with things that we know and are familiar with.”
The course begins with three introductory lectures on AI, then transitions into student-led presentations, many of which incorporate ChatGPT as a tool for research and preparation. Students are also encouraged to experiment with AI in their assignments. After completing readings, they are asked to generate discussion questions, run them through AI tools and compare those responses with their own responses and perspectives. This approach gives students valuable insight into both the potential and the limitations of AI-generated content.
Toward the end of the semester, Bromberg addresses one of the most pressing fears among students: that AI could make their future careers obsolete. Her message is reassuring: “Overall job loss is nearly negligible. AI won’t take your job, the people who know how to use AI will.”
Avi Villareal, a dance major pursuing a dual degree with Emory and Georgia Institute of Technology in environmental engineering, entered the seminar class last year with little knowledge of AI.
“My biggest takeaway from the class was how AI is biased and flawed. AI is progressing rapidly right now, but most people don't understand how it works, which will lead to a lot of misinformation being spread,” Villareal says. “I think having a good understanding of AI and how it can be used as a tool or an inhibitor of my learning process is going to have a positive impact on my college career.”
Myles Garber, a biology major with eyes set on medical school for ophthalmology, also took the course last year. “This class helped me progress in college by challenging me to think about new topics in a variety of ways and then assessing how each line of thinking competes, relative to others.”
By blending technical knowledge with critical discussion, Bromberg’s seminar equips first-year students with the tools to engage thoughtfully and responsibly with one of the most transformative forces of their generation.
Bromberg is a professor of biology and computer science at Emory University, where she leads the Bromberg Lab. Her research applies computational and bioinformatics tools to understand how DNA encodes the molecular machinery of life, uncovering where it comes from and how it operates.