Pearson and AWS Research: 74% of Brazilian Employers and Students Say AI Makes Higher Education Even More Essential
Study underscores strong confidence in higher education but reveals gaps in turning access to AI into practical experience and workplace skills
SÃO PAULO — Sept. 4, 2026 — Pearson (FTSE: PSON.L), the world’s lifelong learning company, and Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), an Amazon.com, Inc. company (NASDAQ: AMZN), today announced the findings of “AI Readiness: Building the Bridge from Higher Education to Work in Brazil,” a study examining how Brazilian universities, students and employers are preparing for a labor market increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.
In Brazil, the findings point to strong confidence in the continued value of higher education in the age of AI. At the same time, they reveal a disconnect between the pace of change, access to AI tools and the ability to apply them in real-world work settings. The challenge, therefore, is not simply to expand adoption, but to turn exposure to AI into practical, responsible, and workplace-ready capability.
The Data: High Potential, Clear Opportunity
The Brazil study surveyed 500 participants — 350 undergraduate students, 100 higher education leaders and 50 employers — as part of a broader study across six markets. The findings were supplemented by qualitative interviews with higher education experts.
Key findings include:
• 74% of Brazilian employers and 74% of students believe advances in AI make higher education even more essential, among the highest rates across the markets surveyed.
• 76% of Brazilian employers expect the pace of AI-driven change to accelerate over the next two years. At the same time, only 17% of students believe their universities are keeping pace with most or all AI advances, compared with 38% of higher education leaders.
• 53% of students, 52% of employers, and 49% of higher education leaders show interest in a hybrid model that combines university education with practical experience.
• 42% of employers cite the gap between academic knowledge and practical application as a barrier to hiring recent graduates; another 42% cite a lack of hands-on experience with AI tools in the workplace.
• Among employers, 44% prioritize the ability to use AI tools when hiring, while another 44% value an understanding of AI risks and limitations.
• Only 47% of undergraduates are satisfied with the amount of AI-related content in their academic curriculum — the lowest share among the markets surveyed — while between 55% and 66% use AI tools they have sourced independently, outside those provided by their institutions.
• 30% of students say they are uncomfortable disclosing their use of AI to faculty — the highest level of undisclosed AI use among the markets analyzed.
The findings suggest that what is changing is not the value placed on a university degree, but what that degree needs to demonstrate in terms of workplace readiness. The demand is for an education that combines deep knowledge with practical experience, responsible AI use, and human skills that can be demonstrated in the workplace.
“The study shows that Brazil has strong foundations to lead this new phase of education in the age of artificial intelligence: engaged students, universities taking action and employers that recognize the value of higher education. The next step is to turn that potential into real workplace readiness,” said Cinthia Nespoli, CEO of Pearson in Brazil. “That means bringing education and employers closer together, expanding responsible AI use and developing essential human capabilities such as adaptability, communication, creativity and judgment.”
There are also signs of progress. Among employers, 54% say today’s recent graduates are better prepared than those hired five years ago. They highlight learning agility (58%) and the ability to use digital and AI tools (52%) as key strengths. At the same time, creativity and innovative thinking stand out as an area for development: only 18% of employers rate recent graduates as excellent in this capability, below the 27% average across the markets surveyed.
Governance and Investment Remain Uneven
Only 15% of Brazilian students say they are clearly aware of their university’s AI guidelines, while 42% say they are not aware of any institutional guidance at all. Among higher education leaders, 28% describe AI investment as significant, while 16% say it is minimal or nonexistent. The study also finds that 34% of employers cite problematic AI habits — such as overreliance on AI or uncritical acceptance of AI-generated outputs — as a challenge associated with recent graduates.
“Brazil has a unique opportunity: a robust higher education ecosystem, students who are highly engaged with technology, and employers that already recognize the value of AI. What is still needed is the bridge — clear governance, practical training, and stronger collaboration across the public sector, academia and industry. AWS is committed to helping build that bridge through cloud and AI infrastructure, free skills-training programs, and collaboration with universities and governments across the country,” said Paulo Cunha, Director for the Public Sector at AWS Brazil.
The Solution: Bringing Education and Work Closer to Turn Access into Applied Readiness
AI readiness depends on more than access to technology. It requires more structured systems that connect curriculum, institutional guidance, practical experience, and real workforce needs.
To help higher education institutions and employers move from diagnosis to action, Pearson and AWS identified six friction points across the education-to-work pathway:
• Pace: the gap between the speed of AI-driven change and institutions’ ability to update curricula and decision-making.
• Connection: the lack of consistent feedback mechanisms between employers and higher education institutions, reducing alignment between learning and workforce needs.
• Capability: uneven educator readiness to integrate AI consistently into learning experiences.
• Governance: the absence of clear, practical guidance to turn access to AI into responsible, governed use.
• Experience: the gap between having access to AI tools and having structured opportunities to practice, apply and demonstrate capability in real-world settings.
• Skills: the misalignment between what students know and can demonstrate, and the judgment, adaptability and collaboration employers require in AI-enabled roles.
By combining Pearson’s expertise in learning, assessment, credentialing and workforce skills with AWS’s deep insight into how AI is built, deployed and governed in modern organizations, the research offers a shared framework to help higher education institutions and employers align around a more concrete and practical definition of AI readiness.
Read the full study here: https://www.pearson.com/content/dam/global-store/global/resources/ai-readiness/BR-AI-Readiness-EN.pdf
About Pearson
At Pearson, our purpose is simple: to help people realize the life they imagine through learning. We believe that every learning opportunity is a chance for a personal breakthrough. That's why our c. 18,000 Pearson employees are committed to creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. We are the world's lifelong learning company, serving customers in nearly 200 countries with digital content, assessments, qualifications, and data. For us, learning isn't just what we do. It's who we are. Visit us at plc.pearson.com.
About Amazon Web Services
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is guided by customer obsession, pace of innovation, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. By democratizing technology for nearly two decades and making cloud computing and generative AI accessible to organizations of every size and industry, AWS has built one of the fastest-growing enterprise technology businesses in history. Millions of customers trust AWS to accelerate innovation, transform their businesses, and shape the future. With the most comprehensive AI capabilities and global infrastructure footprint, AWS empowers builders to turn big ideas into reality. Learn more at aws.amazon.com and follow @AWSNewsroom.
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