A study of labor market competencies among Hungarian engineering students

The study presents partial results of extensive research conducted among 320 engineering students. As part of the exploration of university students’ attitudes towards robotization, our primary objective was to learn about their opinions regarding their own labor market competencies. The exploration of the labor-displacing effect of technological changes has long been the subject of research (Pol et al. 2017). The introduction of innovations is presented as a workplace threat to young people, as technical development represents a significant factor of uncertainty for future generations (Radinsky 2015). Investigators (Turja et al. 2022; Dornelles et al. 2023) have emphasized that the advance of robotics and artificial intelligence may further intensify this uncertainty. The results of our research show that students perceive themselves as having serious deficiencies in their self-confidence, judgment and decision-making skills, as well as their problem-solving skills.