New research highlights a mismatch between student AI use, institutional policies, and employer expectations as generative AI reshapes coursework and hiring. A Lumina Foundation–Gallup poll found most college students report using AI tools (like ChatGPT and Copilot) every day or week on assignments, even as roughly half say their schools discourage or prohibit AI. Employers, meanwhile, report they struggle to find graduates with the right AI skills. A Pearson–Amazon Web Services survey found 53% of employers cite AI-skill gaps as their key challenge, while only a small share of graduates say they can apply AI tools professionally. Higher-education leaders are more optimistic than employers about alignment, and many students report uncertainty about whether their AI use is compliant with institutional policies. Together, the findings point to the next phase of AI adoption for campus leaders: not just tool access, but clearer expectations, ethical guidance, and applied instruction that translates AI use into workplace-capable skills.