The Digital Shift and AI Integration in Undergraduate Education: Exploring Learning Experiences Across STEM and Non-STEM Disciplines

Abstract

The rapid global digital shift, driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies, is transforming higher education environments. This study examines how undergraduate students engage with these technologies and how such interactions are associated with personalized learning, student engagement, digital literacy, and adaptive learning across STEM and non-STEM disciplines. The research was conducted in Qatar as part of the Summer Internship Program at the Qatar University Young Scientists Center (QUYSC). A validated survey instrument was used to measure four key learning-related dimensions associated with students’ interaction with these technologies. Quantitative analysis, including descriptive statistics, reliability testing, and correlation analysis, examined relationships among the constructs. The findings revealed strong positive associations across all dimensions, indicating that engagement with these technologies is associated with students’ perceived learning readiness and digital competence. STEM students showed slightly higher levels of digital engagement, possibly reflecting differences in prior exposure to technological systems, while descriptive variations were observed across gender and nationality. From a technology and engineering education perspective, these findings suggest that students’ engagement can be understood as interaction with technological systems through which technological awareness and interaction capabilities are developed. This study contributes to technology and engineering education by conceptualizing students’ engagement with AI-enabled platforms as interaction with technological systems that support these capabilities.