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According to an survey conducted by the Computing Research Association, the number of majors and pre-majors in American computer science programs was up 6.2 percent from 2007. This marks the first time in six years that enrollment in computer science has increased.
"This could be a sign that we are beginning to make headway as well as increased attention, increased interest, and increased investment," said Andrew A. Chien, director of research at Intel.
Since the dot-com implosion starting in 2000, the field has seen a startling decline, leading some to warn about the effect it would have on the nation's ability to compete in the global economy. But in the past few years, there has been much effort to allay potential students' fears that computer science entails little more than sitting cooped up in front of a PC banging out code. That has helped lead to a 9.5 percent increase in the number of new undergraduate majors in computer science, and cut the decline in new bachelor's degrees from 20 percent to 10 percent.
Despite the increase, computer science remains of most interest to men, at least according to enrollment and graduation figures. Women accounted for a consistent 11.8 percent of computer science bachelor degrees in 2008.
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Wareagle
March 17, 2009 at 8:44pm
During a recession, school enrollment always increases.
As for the claim that "computer science entails little more than sitting cooped up in front of a PC banging out code," I (somewhat) agree. I have a bachelor's degree in computer science and, if you work in the software industry, your job will be almost exactly that. It's about 25% writing new code, and 75% debugging.
As it stands, I'm switching careers into something different. I'm not sure what yet, but I want to do something where I don't have to spend all day in a God damned cubicle.
praetor_alpha
March 17, 2009 at 7:12pm
The days of a "programmer in a dark basement alone writing code" are over. If no one noticed, most, if not all, software is being written in teams, not by individuals. Computer Science is starting to involve more "people" skills than ever before.
PS. I am a student at Neumont University. This place is all about CS, if you are interested.
ratknight
March 17, 2009 at 3:16pm
This fall I will be going to college to get a Bachelors in CIS in Networking, so I could see how this is going up, lol.
Very cool... kinda, I guess that means more competitions :)
