The recent changes in the high-tech job market demand a significantly different approach to teaching Computer Science in higher education. Expectations for CS and Software Engineering graduates have shifted. Routine software development tasks that were once implemented manually are now handled by AI tools.
Nowadays, recent graduates are expected to design and deliver complex, innovative systems from their first day in industry. Preparing students for this reality cannot rely on traditional teaching methods, where theory is taught separately from tools, concepts are introduced slowly and sequentially, and practice is limited to small, isolated exercises.
Hands-On AI Science courses are structured differently: the course material directly guides the development of non-trivial, innovative student projects running in parallel with the course. To achieve this, the curriculum integrates a broad range of tools, theoretical concepts, and programming libraries from the outset. Students receive early exposure to a comprehensive toolkit of methods and technologies, enabling them to begin meaningful project work immediately while revisiting more advanced topics later for deeper understanding and project refinement.