Artificial intelligence isn’t coming...it’s already here.
It’s writing proposals, screening applicants, planning events, even answering student emails. And now, with AGI, Artificial General Intelligence, on the horizon, it’s no longer about automating tasks. It’s about automating judgment.
Across higher education, offices are being told to “do more with less.” Systems are consolidating. Campuses are merging departments. And while administrators debate efficiency, student life professionals are the ones watching culture slip through the cracks.
But as budgets tighten, it’s also the first place leaders look to cut.
The problem is that the work Student Life does, mentoring, creating space for connection, designing experiences that remind students they matter, can’t be outsourced to a machine.
When AGI arrives, it will be capable of replacing decision-making and communication streams if unchecked. If Student Life doesn’t draw the line now, we risk letting algorithms decide what “belonging” looks like.
The question isn’t whether AI will change our work. It already has.
The question is: who stays in control?
If Student Life professionals don’t take the lead on how AI is used, it will be decided for them by enrollment offices, or by corporate systems that don’t understand what it means to care for students.
This is why every department should be part of the AI conversation, especially those responsible for programming and engagement.
They are the ones who understand what keeps students involved, what makes them stay, and why connection still matters in a digital world.
A strong Student Life budget isn’t about events, it’s about infrastructure for belonging.
When you fund programming, you’re funding retention, recruitment, and human contact in an environment that’s losing all three.
Budgets should reflect this new reality:
AGI may soon run models, analyze data, and even predict who will graduate. But it cannot create the reason students stay. That’s the work of Student Life.
At Metropolis Management, we work with campuses across the country who are already adapting to this change.
We using technology to be more efficient, but not to erase the human element.
We understand that programming isn’t entertainment; it’s engagement. It’s how you hold on to the culture that AI can’t replicate.
That’s why the acts and speakers we represent are chosen for impact, not algorithms. Because no machine can replace the feeling of a live show that brings people together; the laughter, the reflection, the shared energy that reminds everyone why they’re here.
AI and AGI will reshape higher education faster than most of us are ready for.
But the institutions that thrive will be the ones that protect the human experience inside the automation.
Student Life professionals aren’t just planning events; they’re defining where humanity still matters.
And that’s the work worth funding.
Contact Metropolis Management to design programming that helps your campus stay connected, inspired, and future-ready.
📧 Libby@metropolismanagement.com | Michelle@metropolismanagement.com
🌐 www.metropolismanagement.com