A welcomed reversal in computer science enrollments: Analysis of contributing factors and recommendations to sustain the growth

Abstract

Periodic assessment of enrollment in programs is helpful in different ways. It reveals patterns that may not be immediately clear and it identifies contributing factors that provide insight into sustaining growth. For Information Technology (IT) programs, this kind of assessment takes another dimension - the rapid changes of IT may dictate on faculty members to continuously study market demand and to reshape their program’s curriculum in response to the demand. This study assesses the recent trends of enrollment in Computer Science programs. It presents enrollment trends in the years since the turn of the century, analyzes the factors that contributed to the cycles occurring during these years, and provides recommendations for sustaining the most recent trend. This paper sheds light on a program in Computer Science at a university in Western Pennsylvania. It shows how this department continued assessing the trends regularly and how they are responding to the most recent enrollment trends in their program. The paper concludes with a summary and recommendations.