Shaping Careers Thanks to MSAI

AI is at the center of innovation across a wide range of industries, from financial services and healthcare to retail and transportation. In many instances, graduates from Northwestern Engineering's Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence (MSAI) are at the forefront of that innovation.  

It's easy to think working with AI means working in tech, but the reality is there are jobs in almost every field that require AI knowledge and understanding.   

"AI and its implications on business continue to evolve seemingly on a daily basis," MSAI director Kristian Hammond said. "Because of that, it's more important than ever to have engineers who understand how to build AI systems and how to leverage the technology to augment and partner with human workers. 

To help demonstrate the array of opportunities available to someone with an AI background, the MSAI program launched a series of stories highlighting common industries being revolutionized by AI. The "Careers in AI" section of the MSAI website features nine different fields relying on the skills and knowledge developed by the program’s students.   

Those industries include: 

• Consulting 
• Financial Services 
• Healthcare 
• Legal Services 
• Research 
• Retail 
• Social Media 
• Technology 
• Transportation

Each section includes information on how an AI professional would function in that industry, how MSAI prepares students for the field, and how AI is applied to that industry. Each section also features a list of companies where MSAI students or alumni have interned or worked, as well as profiles of recent graduates now thriving in the respective industry.  

Each class of MSAI students features a mix of individuals who know what industry they want to work in and others who hope to explore a variety of possibilities. Both are welcome in the program, and the curriculum is flexible enough so that each student can create a path that's best for them. 

MSAI students can take elective courses and often work on practicum projects sponsored by other schools or departments within the University. 

During their final quarter, MSAI students work on a capstone project in partnership with students from MBAi Program, a joint-degree program offered between the Kellogg School of Management and the McCormick School of Engineering. The students are tasked with solving a real problem — often with the application of AI — for a business partner. Past capstone sponsors include CDW, EY, Google, Home Depot, and Vanguard, just to name a few.

"Our goal in MSAI is to prepare students to be leaders in the field — whatever field they choose," MSAI deputy director Mohammed Alam said. "We don't need to see all of our alumni go work at big-name tech companies. We want our graduates to find roles that help them make a difference in their community, in their industry, and across society."