UNT Department of Computer Science and Engineering faculty are planning a new program to equip undergraduate students with AI knowledge and skills through mentorship and hands-on research experiences.

The University of North Texas already has academic programs focused on AI such as its master’s degree in artificial intelligence and AI certificate programs as well as courses across colleges that are integrating AI into their curriculums. However, with a nearly $2 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation, faculty in the UNT Department of Computer Science and Engineering are planning a new AI Scholars program to equip undergraduate students with AI knowledge and skills through mentorship and hands-on research experiences. The funding comes from the NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Program (S-STEM), which is designed to help enable students to pursue STEM careers.

“AI has been dominating many aspects of our lives from new technologies to new products, which means there are very high demands for AI-savvy employees in the workforce,” says Xiaohui Yuan, UNT associate professor of computer science and engineering and principal investigator for the NSF grant. “We want to make sure our students are well prepared with the knowledge and skills they need to be competitive in the job market.”

Read the full article on UNT Research and Innovation website.