Gone are the days when artificial intelligence was a novelty used to thump chess champions. Today, AI is not the future; it is the now.
The University of Florida is no stranger to AI, as it is home to HiPerGator, one of the world’s fastest supercomputers. In fact, UF is one of the first universities to offer AI curriculum, integrating AI into its core mission in an ambitious quest to become an AI university.
This initiative allows students to be part of a groundbreaking journey that equips them with invaluable skills. To be an AI university is to be a leader in innovation that harnesses technology to prepare a savvy workforce.
The first steps are incorporating AI instruction into all disciplines, hiring more than 100 expert AI faculty across all 16 colleges, and offering more than 230 courses in AI and data science to all students, regardless of their major.
Even students without a background in computer or data science can learn the basics of AI and explore AI ethics because AI technology is a force in most workplaces.
As of 2024, nearly 12,000 students have enrolled in UF courses with access to HiPerGator to put applications into practice. In Engineering, the college offers several classes with an AI focus, one of which is a requirement for the undergraduate Artificial Intelligence Fundamentals and Applications certificate.
Since the program started in 2021, 673 students have received this certificate, and 1,126 students are in the process of completing it.
“We are really starting to see tremendous growth in the certificate because students are looking for a more formal recognition of their knowledge base,” said Hans van Oostrom, Ph.D., faculty chair of the University Curriculum Committee and former chair of the Department of Engineering Education. “The certificate provides that level of validation of their learning and application.”
The certificate is intended for undergraduates of all majors to understand AI fundamentals, applications to real-world problems in various disciplines, and AI ethical and professional responsibilities. The certificate consists of a required fundamentals course, a college-specific application course and an ethics course.
“The courses are set up where they don’t require programming,” said van Oostrom. “There are enough high-level tools out there for non-engineers to use AI properly and understand how it works.”
The AI Fundamentals course had more than 500 students enrolled in the certificate program this past fall and over 700 students enrolled in the spring. A class once held in-person has now moved online to accommodate its popularity.
Diego Alvarado, an instructional assistant professor in the Department of Engineering Education, was involved from the ground floor on this course and has seen the evolution of the Fundamentals of AI. For Alvarado, it has been a very rewarding experience. AI is for everyone, he contends, and everyone should have access to it.
“When it first started in 2019, we were asked to create a course in digital literacy that was designed for everyone – how to live in a digital world, how to behave online and understand that what you put out there can affect the hiring process,” Alvarado said. “But with the onset of AI, we pivoted and knew that we needed to create something to address the AI wave.”
One of the unique things about this class is that it brings students from all disciplines together.
“In the past, it would have been rare to see engineering talking to business or business talking to science,” Alvarado said. “But with the AI University model, you see professors in linguistics working with professionals in computer science working on AI projects. And the class mimics that.”
Alvarado, who was named UF’s AI Educator of the Year in 2024, continues to embrace the promise of AI, which he brings into the class for relatable lessons. One lesson simulates a sea turtle conservation internship where they train their own AI algorithms and practice using real-world applications.
“It’s a great way to make the class fun and engaging,” Alvarado said. “The students expand their skills by teaching a bot how to answer questions. They do regression analysis and learn how to analyze data and then work on image recognition.”
Professional courses are also available for working professionals seeking to gain insight into artificial intelligence. While similar to those offered to students, these courses are condensed. They aim to demystify AI concepts and require no prior knowledge of mathematics or programming. The curriculum emphasizes practical applications, exploring how AI can effectively integrate within various industries. UF also provides a series of professional development courses designed to help higher education faculty and administrators enhance their skills through UF’s AI Learning Academy, hosted by the AI(2) Center. This immersive four-day program equips participants with AI-driven content and practical applications they can integrate into their courses, empowering them to educate and prepare the next generation of AI-enabled professionals.
With the addition of two master’s degrees in Applied Data Science and AI Systems in 2024, UF engineering is expanding options beyond the certificate.
The Applied Data Science degree is open to students or working professionals who have a bachelor’s degree in a non-computing engineering field.
The AI Systems degree is designed for students or working professionals with a bachelor’s degree and strong analytical and computing backgrounds, such as computer engineering or science, industrial and systems engineering, or physics.
In the classroom, college faculty are integrating AI in different ways throughout different departments. All are using HiPerGator, which was generously donated by engineering alumnus Chris Malachowsky and NVIDIA in 2020. This initiative not only allowed students to be part of a groundbreaking journey but also equipped them with valuable skills to enhance their resumes.
Sanethia Thomas, Ph.D., an assistant instructional professor in the Department of Computer & Information Science Engineering, incorporated AI into her study abroad course to address various challenges. Her projects included developing a personalized tutoring platform for a nonprofit organization, utilizing image recognition to document indigenous plants and insects in a wetland restoration effort in Cape Town, South Africa, and creating an interactive map to help residents of an informal settlement locate essential resources.
“This was impactful to students and challenged them to think differently on how to take something as advanced as AI and make it suitable and applicable and useable for the residents in this area,” Thomas said. “That connection piece really challenged the students, and they did a phenomenal job.”
Incidentally, Florida is one of the pioneering states to implement a K-12 artificial intelligence education program to equip students for the increasing global demand for an AI-skilled workforce. From AI curriculum development to experiential learning and teacher education and assessment, UF is making sure that, as the flagship institution, it is providing resources in this area that will pay dividends for future generations.
Faculty from UF’s Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering and the College of Education have led the development of the AI curriculum for Florida public schools, basing it on the National Science Foundation’s guidelines for teaching AI in elementary and secondary education. The objective is to enhance students’ understanding of AI and their awareness of its applications in daily life.