US College Enrollment Declines in Computer Science Amid AI Job Market Concerns

Preliminary fall enrollment figures from the National Student Clearinghouse show that computer and information science departments at US colleges experienced an exodus of students this fall. Undergraduate enrollment declined by more than 12%, and graduate enrollment dropped by more than 10%. This decline follows a trend where computer science undergraduate programs lost 18.4% of students and graduate programs lost 27.1% in two years.

The losses in computer science enrollment are linked to the rise of artificial intelligence, which has made it harder for graduates to find jobs as companies eliminate entry-level coding roles. This trend contrasts with health majors, where enrollment grew by as much as 6.2% across all institutions.