Goldman Sachs has found the first clear evidence that college students are moving away from majors exposed to AI. Enrollment in computer science and programming each fell over 10% in the 2025-2026 academic year, reversing years of booming growth. This retreat is part of a wider repricing of higher education, as students, employers, and business schools judge degrees by their resilience to automation. Economist Pierfrancesco Mei mapped 180 majors to jobs using Census data and scored each for automation risk, finding computer science, statistics, and quantitative business majors at highest risk, while pharmacy, nursing, and education ranked safest. The shift is driven by employer automation of entry-level roles, with AI cutting US jobs monthly. Underemployment among recent graduates hit 42.5%, the highest since 2020. Mid-tier MBA programs are slashing tuition by up to 50% as applications fall 20-30%. However, some argue AI may transform rather than eliminate jobs, with projections of 170 million new roles by 2030. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang advises learning to use AI to stay relevant.

Key facts

• CS and programming enrollment fell over 10% in 2025-26.
• High-risk majors: CS, statistics, quantitative business.
• Safe majors: pharmacy, nursing, education.
• Recent grad underemployment hit 42.5% in 2025.
• NVIDIA CEO: Use AI or lose job to someone who does.