Summary:
Computer science enrollment dropped 11.2% in 2025-26. What drove this crash? Mass tech layoffs, AI takeovers, and a supply-demand mismatch. These trends leave families questioning if computer science is still a good major in 2026. Plainly, computer science remains a valuable major, but only for interdisciplinary students.
Not long ago, declaring a computer science (CS) major was regarded as the “golden ticket” of higher education. Six-figure starting salaries and AI-proof job security were all top of mind for college applicants during the last several years. Parents pushed their kids toward it, guidance counselors recommended it, and universities began hiring more faculty to meet the demand of students.
That era is officially over.
In 2025-2026, enrollment in computing disciplines at four-year universities dropped 8.1%, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSCRC). Compared to similar STEM majors, computer science saw the steepest decline with a 11.2% drop in undergraduate enrollment.
Even well-known STEM colleges are echoing similar figures. The University of California system saw a 6% decrease in computer science enrollment in 2025.
As Michal Goldstein, Director of Collegewise Tutoring & Test Prep, who has been tracking these trends closely, put it: “As a major, computer science is definitely in a state of flux. The reported data on computer science enrollments is really astonishing, given that four to six years ago, computer science was viewed as a fairly practical field to enter into and study.”
How did the most popular major in recent years become one that students are fleeing from the fastest?
To understand why this crash is so significant, we have to look back at what caused such an increased interest in computer science majors in the first place.
Computer science enrollment had grown at an unprecedented rate, driven by the simple narrative that computer science was one of the most lucrative fields of work and a field that Artificial Intelligence (AI) couldn’t possibly replace.
Tech giants such as Meta, Amazon, and Google reinforced these beliefs by aggressively expanding their workforces in the 2010s. Even today, 78% of technology leaders surveyed by Robert Half plan to increase their headcounts in the second half of 2026.
When students wondered: “What should I major in?”, computer science seemed to be a no-brainer for students considering a return on investment (ROI). Starting salaries for computer science graduates were among the highest of any undergraduate major. For the Class of 2022, the starting salary for computer scientists was $86,964, according to NACE.
This, coupled with the increased demand from tech giants and AI fearmongering, became the driving forces behind the rise in computer science majors.
Unfortunately, 2023 brought forward change that ultimately shook the technology industry. This shift is now causing students to pause before declaring computer science as a college major.
In 2023, the technology industry went through a hiring reversal with massive amounts of job losses and regular layoff announcements from companies such as Amazon, Google, Meta, Salesforce, and Microsoft. These tech companies cut over 260,000 jobs in 2023 alone.
This figure hasn’t improved in 2026. According to Skillsyncer’s 2026 Tech Layoff Tracker, over 185,000 people have been impacted by layoffs or company shutdowns.
As AI became more sophisticated, companies discovered they could run leaner teams with experienced engineers and AI software working together. This indicated that the computer science safety net was no longer real.
It is worth noting that the picture is more complicated than headlines suggest. Matthew Frankel, a Stanford University graduate and Collegewise Counselor, points out: “There are too many economic confounds that affect tech companies that we need to wait out before arriving at any conclusions. A lot of the slowdown in tech hiring coincided with rising interest rates — and the tech sector was hit especially hard by a change in the tax code: from 2022 to 2024, R&D expenses could no longer be immediately deducted and instead had to be amortized over five years, significantly increasing the effective cost of building software." He adds, "This has since reverted, but companies are still working through the residual impact. This slowdown came on the heels of a massive hiring spree during the low-interest-rate, fiscal-stimulus pandemic period, so it feels especially stark. ”
Goldstein also notes that some of the biggest layoff stories have since partially reversed. Microsoft rehired thousands of workers it had previously cut, and companies that leaned heavily into AI-driven workforces severely underestimated how much human expertise they needed.
Just as tech layoffs were taking over news outlets, companies began automating exactly the kind of work that junior engineers and developers used to do. Simple scripts and coding were tasks that gave new computer science graduates a foot in the door, but were quickly being replaced by AI tools and drying up potential job opportunities.
This created a problem for new graduates for two reasons:
As a result, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, computer science (7.0%) and computer engineering (7.9%) have some of the highest unemployment rates in 2026.
Even with the technology industry recovering, entry-level jobs are the slowest to recover, with more companies automating these responsibilities.
If you’re familiar with the numbers side of the college admissions process, you’ll recognize that at all the highly selective colleges, there is a simple supply-demand mismatch. Too many qualified applicants fighting for a limited number of seats creates an unbalanced admissions process that does not favor students.
The job market and computer science interest have been operating the same way. The number of computer science bachelor’s degrees nearly tripled between 2012 and 2022, according to Stanford HAI. This means the demand for computer science-related jobs severely outweighed the number of available positions.
Though Frankel puts the employment picture into useful context: “The unemployment rate [according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York] for recent CS graduates is 7%, which is about 1.5% higher than all recent grads. However, the underemployment rate for recent CS graduates is 19%, worse than it had been, but still lower than pretty much all majors besides aerospace, nursing, civil engineering, and education. Most other majors have anywhere from 25% to 50% underemployment.”
His read on what’s actually happening challenges the dominant narrative: “It seems like the higher unemployment rate can be explained by CS majors having a lower tolerance for underemployment than most other majors. They’re holding out for that $87K salary instead of taking available jobs outside their degree. So yes, there’s a slowdown in tech hiring, but that does not mean CS is somehow a bad major now. I think the numbers indicate the opposite.”
Students may be pausing on computer science, but they aren’t abandoning technology as a whole. Many colleges are recognizing the need to adapt and innovate majors offered to students, too. MIT offers Artificial Intelligence and Decision Making (AI+D), Carnegie Mellon has an AI program, and UC San Diego launched its AI major earlier this year. These changes are directly correlated to the demand for AI-related education. MIT’s findings highlight this firsthand, with MIT’s AI+D undergraduate major now the second-largest major at the university.
Other top colleges such as Northwestern, Columbia, USC, Cornell, UC Berkeley, and UT Austin are prioritizing AI programs for recent and future students in hopes of reversing the decline we’ve been witnessing in the most recent admissions cycle.
But AI isn’t the only consideration for students. Students are spreading to technology-adjacent fields such as cybersecurity, data science and analytics, and business technology in hopes of differentiating themselves with credentials that signal more than just technical ability.
AI has already replaced aspects of computer science-related jobs such as basic coding, script writing, programming, data entry, data analysis, and other administrative tasks. AI is certainly shaving down workforces, not just in computer science fields, but in all sectors. However, the silver lining here is that the technology industry is evolving, not disappearing.
Experts are careful not to conflate disruption with elimination. Johns Hopkins University researchers argue strongly that computer science forms the foundation for AI; that its evolution is fundamentally built on the work of the computer scientists who design, train, and operate these systems.
They emphasize the need for individuals to shift from passive AI users to power users. Being able to combine technical computer science skills, human judgement, and algorithmic thinking to innovate and problem-solve.
Frankel agrees, “The coders who can use AI coding assistants most productively and accurately are the ones who are really good at old-fashioned coding. I'm more worried about the impact of cheating on the job market than AI replacing jobs. Who will want to hire undergrads who don't know the basics they need to use AI coding assistants efficiently?”
AI isn’t just eliminating jobs; it’s also creating new ones. Companies have integrated AI into their day-to-day operations in an effort to streamline existing processes and responsibilities. But many companies are beginning to think more broadly about what AI is capable of doing and need skilled professionals to oversee it.
Some in-demand jobs created as a result of AI:
Yes, computer science is still a valuable major in 2026, but it will require strategic thinking from students and an interdisciplinary approach.
Even with elevated unemployment rates, computer science graduates are still out-earning the majority of their peers. But the job market and AI shifts pose real concerns that families should consider before making a decision.
Before declaring computer science as a major, students should understand that earning a degree alone is no longer compelling to recruiters. Things that will help make students stand out in the rising competition:
In his experience counseling STEM students, Frankel believes computer science is here to stay. “Do I think being a computer science major is worth it? Yes, if you're decent at computer science and enjoy it. The job market isn't as bad as it seems. Current AI models' inherent unpredictability means entry-level humans will still spend much of their days planning, debugging, testing, and coordinating with teammates. AI debugging and testing its own code completely independently is not widespread practice, and many doubt that AI will ever perform these tasks predictably enough to eliminate significant human involvement. Likewise, using AI for complex tasks will increase heavily in expense when venture capital is no longer willing to subsidize it. This makes an entry-level job apocalypse unlikely compared to a much more modest reduction."
Drawing on mathematicians' reaction to a recent event in which AI solved an 80-year-old open problem in mathematics, Frankel believes this makes a compelling case for why interdisciplinary thinking is more important than ever.
"Unless students embrace interdisciplinarity and risk-taking, AI might stand a good chance at beating them at the difficult, human problems that we've gotten worse at because we've trained ourselves to avoid intellectual curiosity and risk-taking in favor of pre-professional expertise. CS students should consider double-majoring in something to gain those skills,” says Frankel.
Computer science had a remarkable run. The enrollment boom was rational for its time and produced a generation of exceptional engineers and scientists. However, the decline is equally rational and reflects an evolving world.
We are not witnessing the elimination of computer science education; we’re simply seeing it adapt to meet the needs of AI. Foundational skills learned in computer science courses haven’t lost their value; they are just no longer the only credential students need to stand out.
For those students considering majors today, asking themselves: “Is computer science a good major?” Simply put, yes, computer science is a good major for students, even in 2026. But that answer shouldn’t be the only reason a student explores computer science. Dig deeper and consider why computer science may be a good fit for you and how you hope to explore your interests in the real world. Through this introspection, students may discover ways to set themselves apart from the competition in high school, college, and beyond.
If computer science is the right major for you, the right program matters more than it has ever before. In a precarious job market, specialization and real-world experience matter more than a diploma alone. It’s less about where a student attends college, and more about what that student accomplishes with the resources they have that can meaningfully shape their outcomes.
Below is a list of the best colleges for computer science in 2026, including highly selective, public, and private institutions.
|
U.S. News & World Report Ranking |
CSRankings.Org Ranking |
|
|
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) |
1 |
1 |
|
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) |
1 |
5 |
|
Stanford University |
1 |
12 |
|
University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) |
4 |
6 |
|
University of California, San Diego (UCSD) |
12 |
3 |
|
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) |
5 |
2 |
|
University of Texas, Austin (UT Austin) |
10 |
14 |
|
Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) |
7 |
4 |
|
University of Washington |
7 |
6 |
|
University of Maryland, College Park |
12 |
8 |