Enrollments in Computer Science

Enrollments in Computer Science - In decline?

At ACM SIG-CSE07 (Association for Computing Machinery) (Special Interest Group) in (Computer Science Education) 2007 was held in Covington KY (across the Ohio R. from Cincinnati). Professors Leland Beck and Kris Stewart attended and presented workshops (Beck) and panel discussion (Stewart).

A powerful, thought-provoking Special Session: The Current Crisis in Computing: What are the Real Issues? was organized by Andrew McGettrick, U. Strathclyde, speaking of the Grand Challenges in Computing: Education which has resulted in two conferences (2004 & 2006) with detailed discussions. [BCS = British Computing Society]

There are links to many excellent reports

http://www.ukcrc.org.uk/grand_challenges/index.cfm 2005 Grand Challenge Reports
www.ukcrc.org.uk/gcresearch.pdf Grand Challenges in CS Research
www.ukcrc.org.uk/gceducation.pdf Grand Challenges in CS Education

Also presenting in this session were Lillian (Boots) Cassell, Villanova Univeristy, Mark Guzdial, Georgia Inst. Technology and Eric Roberts, Stanford University.

eweek: "Brochure Aims to Lure Fleeing CS Students Back" eWeek (03/08/07); Perelman, Deborah To address the increasing number of students who, over time, lose their interest in computer science, ACM has created a brochure detailing exciting opportunities in the computer science world. Eric Roberts, Stanford University computer science professor and ACM's Education Board co-chair, has seen computer science at Stanford fall from the second-most popular major to the seventh; Roberts believes students transfer to other majors, such as economics and biology, in search of more money, cutting edge subjects, and stimulating problems. In response, ACM's brochure highlights the computer industry's involvement in modern areas such as robotics, gaming, online music distribution, and digital forensics, and emphasizes the variety in computer science, from theory to finding answers to "real world problems" to radical inventions. For students unsure as to which area would suit them best, the guide breaks down the areas of study: computer engineering for those interested in building progressive tools, information systems for natural-born "troubleshooters," and software engineering for "big picture" people. The guide is also intended to correct misconceptions about the industry; while many believe offshoring has hurt the number of U.S. jobs in the computer science field, there are actually more computing positions today than at any other point in the past, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The BLS also anticipates computer science jobs to be one of the fastest-growing careers over the next 10 years.
Careers and Degrees in Computing from ACM