Recession-proof majors?

Another update on computer science majors: A recent article from ZDNet considers majoring in computer science a recession-proof plan because "no matter how much the economy stinks, we need computers and we need them to work better, more efficiently and in ways that make people more productive."

The story also said that the demand for application programmers — those who create spreadsheets, data programs and word processors, as well as accounting programs, according to PC magazine — will increase by more than 100 percent by next year.

Computer science on the rise... or not

Enrollment in U.S. computer science programs increased last year in comparison to previous years, according to an article published today from The New York Times.

The number of computer science majors was up 6.2 percent from 2007, according to the article.

Cal State Long Beach's statistics do not match up to these, however.

According to CSULB's Institutional Research and Assessment On Demand Reporting, there were 343 students pursuing a bachelor's in computer science in fall 2008, a 1.4 percent decrease from the 348 students in fall 2007. There are about 2,610 students in the College of Engineering.

There was, however, a 12.8 percent increase in master's students: 117 in fall 2007, 132 in fall 2008.

The article also said that women earned 11.8 percent of computer science bachelor's degrees in 2008. A November 2008 article reiterated that point, with the number of women receiving computer science degrees falling more with each year.

At CSULB there were 35 women in the undergraduate computer science program last semester, or 10.2 percent of the program.

The article from last year attributes the decrease to the stereotypes of "the nerd" and "the geek," though it also suggests a move toward fields such as graphic and Web design. However, it remains "a matter of dispute," according to the story.

A recent Cornell study proposes a different reason: The underrepresentation of women in math and science careers is due to "their need for greater flexibility and the demands of parenting and caregiving."

Graph from The New York Times