Students Lose Interest in Computer Science as AI Coding Takes Off

Nova Learning reports the share of surveyed middle and high school students naming Computer Science and AI as their primary academic interest fell from 42.3% in 2025 to 27.9% in 2026, while Engineering rose from 11.9% to 23%. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center also reported an 8.1% drop in Computer and Information Science enrollment at four-year US institutions, to roughly 606,000 students.

• Share of students naming CS and AI as top interest fell from 42.3% to 27.9%
• Software & Data Science lost 44% of its 2025 share; AI fell 6.2 points
• CS enrollment at four-year US institutions dropped 8.1% to about 606,000
• Engineering rose from 11.9% to 23%, led by Mechanical and Aerospace