Enrollment in computer science and programming fell by more than 10% in the 2025–2026 academic year, according to Goldman Sachs — the first clear evidence that college students are steering away from majors they see as vulnerable to artificial intelligence. The decline ends years of booming growth in those fields.
The riskiest majors on campus
Economist Pierfrancesco Mei mapped over 180 majors to occupations using Census survey data from 2022 to 2024 and scored each job for automation risk. Computer science, statistics, and quantitative business majors carried the highest scores. Pharmacy, nursing, and education ranked among the safest. At Arizona State University, bachelor-level computer science enrollment fell roughly 14% between fall 2024 and fall 2025. At Washington University in St. Louis, the share of computer science majors dropped 16% over two years. Meanwhile, enrollment in fields with low AI displacement risk grew about 3% on average, led by healthcare and engineering.
A tough job market for new graduates
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported recent-graduate unemployment near 5.7% at the end of 2025, with underemployment at 42.5% — the highest since 2020. Block cut about 4,000 jobs, tying the decision to automation. ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott warned that new-graduate unemployment could climb into the mid-30s as AI agents absorb early-career work. The message is not lost on students. Stanford graduates walked out on Google’s CEO during a campus event this year.
MBA programs feel the heat
Mid-tier MBA programs are slashing tuition by up to 50%. Purdue cut its online MBA from $60,000 to $36,000. Applications are falling 20% to 30% this cycle, but none of the schools cutting tuition are in the top 20. A new $100,000 cap on graduate borrowing takes effect in July, adding another layer of financial pressure. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang put the choice bluntly: “Every job will be affected… you’re not going to lose your job to an AI, but you’re going to lose your job to someone who uses AI.” The enrollment numbers suggest students are already recalibrating their bets. The borrowing cap arrives in six months.
