AI and Your Values: Finding the Right Employer
At a Glance
- Define your priorities: decide what matters most in an employer, including its approach to AI.
- Ask for evidence: explore AI policies, environmental impacts, privacy, and employee support.
- Keep the research in context: Rutgers student findings concern employer values, not support for or opposition to AI.
- Choose your fit: compare employers with your values and discuss unanswered questions with a career advisor.
A job can fit your skills without fitting your values. Whether you welcome AI, are cautious about it, or prefer work that relies less on it, you can ask how an employer’s choices align with your priorities.
Supporting Every Student’s Career Choices
On a campus as large and diverse as Rutgers–New Brunswick, students bring a wide range of career interests, values, and perspectives on the employers they want to work for. Some are eager to explore careers involving artificial intelligence (AI); others have concerns about its environmental or social impacts, or want to pursue different paths. Each deserves access to information and support that respects their goals.
Career Exploration and Success (CES) serves all students. Providing AI resources and connections to employers helps students who want to explore these opportunities, while guidance on evaluating employers helps students question practices and make informed choices. Exploring an opportunity does not require endorsing every aspect of an employer or technology. Our role is to help you think critically, understand your options, and choose a path that fits your values.
Start With Your Priorities
Choose three things that matter most to you: environmental impact, corporate responsibility, privacy, meaningful work, or another priority. Separate your non-negotiables from preferences you could balance against pay, location, and growth.
Look for Actions, Not Just Promises
Read sustainability reports, workplace policies, and independent reporting. Look for specific goals, progress, and accountability. Ask employees and alumni how those commitments show up in daily work. A policy is a starting point, not proof of someone’s experience.
Questions to Ask About AI at Work
- Choice: Where is AI required or optional in this role? What alternatives are available?
- Environment: How do you assess and reduce the energy and water use associated with AI tools?
- Responsibility: Who reviews AI-assisted decisions, protects private information, and handles concerns about errors or bias?
- People and work: How are employees involved when AI changes their responsibilities, and what training is provided?
Ask for a recent example. Compare the answer with what the organization publishes, and note where you still need information.
What Rutgers Students Say Matters
Universum findings show interest in sustainability and corporate responsibility. These measures describe employer preferences and information needs; they do not measure support for or opposition to AI.
| Measure | Rutgers | Comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Sustainability in employer preferences, 2025 [1] | 41%; rank 17 of 24 | Selected peers: 27%; rank 18 of 24 |
| Corporate responsibility information rated “very important” on employer online channels, 2023 [2] | 37%; position 8 of 12 | U.S. students: 34%; position 9 of 12 |
Rutgers is 14 percentage points above its selected peers on the 2025 sustainability measure and 3 points above the U.S. comparison on the 2023 information measure. Selected peers are institutions identified by Rutgers, not a national sample. The two rows measure different things and should not be treated as a trend.
The 2023 Rutgers report also lists corporate social responsibility as an employer preference at 16%, down from 22% in 2022, and ranked 34 of 40 in 2023 [3]. A comparable national value and prior-year rank are not supplied in that chart. Changes in rankings cannot be established from these sources.
Make a Decision That Fits You
Compare each employer with your priorities, record the evidence, and identify unanswered questions. You do not have to share an employer’s enthusiasm for every technology to ask thoughtful questions about the work.
Our article Assessing Job Offers offers additional guidance on evaluating an opportunity. You can also connect with a Rutgers career advisor to talk through your options.
Sources and Notes
- Universum, 2025 Partner Report—Rutgers University–New Brunswick, “Talent Preferences,” slides 47–48.
- Universum, 2023 University Report—All Students (University), Rutgers University–New Brunswick, slide 78. Positions are calculated among the 12 online-information topics shown; they are not published employer-preference rankings.
- Same 2023 report, slide 96. Corporate social responsibility employer preference, 2022–2023.
About This Article: Developed by Rutgers Career Exploration and Success with support from artificial intelligence (AI) tools.