Computer science majors numbers drop

THE NUMBER of US university students taking computer science majors is dropping dramatically.

According to the Tennessean newspaper, Vanderbilt University's computer science department has apparently half the number of students that it did five years ago and enrollment fell again, to 61 students from 78, last year. Numbers taking computer engineering has also dropped.

Vanderbilt's situation is apparently typical and strangely it is happening just as employers are complaining they cannot find enough qualified employees. Some universities think that students are being scared off from computer science because of the dot-com bust and the fear of outsourcing.

Others think it likely that it is because University courses are too esoteric and technical schools and career colleges do a better job at providing the practical skills and certification much faster.

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