AI now writes 25% of code in the US: Should Computer Science students rethink their career plans?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Too many CS students went into it because they saw a day in the life tiktok video of a Google SWE.

More likely their parents are tech immigrants. Now CS is the only viable job they could imagine.

You post this type of sh** all the time. You really hate immigrants, don't you.

FWIW, my kid is majoring in CS/math. That's what they like, and they could not fathom doing anything else. We did not push them into it. They are also an IBDP grad with a fairly high IB score (strong in STEM subjects) and was also in debate. So, it's not like they don't know how to communicate or write well. It's just what they preferred.

Also, the reason why so many immigrants go into STEM is because those areas tend to be less subjective, and many immigrants have a harder time with the English language. Math, CS, engineering, the language for those subjects are universal.

[Anonymous]

And who writes the AI code?

[Anonymous]

Well, let's look at it this way. For writing code, if AI messes it up, it's going to break. If AI is writing prose or newspaper articles, then when it messes up, you end up with a weird-sounding sentence or a few words mixed up, but still a mostly usable piece of content.

So... since AI can better replace writers than code writers, shouldn't we instead be asking if writers and journalists sholud rethink their career plans?

[Anonymous]

Most CS majors don't do coding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think students who love CS should major in it. Those who were doing so only for a high paying career (or because their parents were forcing it) should not. There will always be CS jobs, just not as many if the lower level coding types of jobs.

Correct. It is more important than ever to go to a high-quality school that is known for rigorous CS with curriuculum in AI and emphasis on critical thinking and problem solving. The CS bubble started to break for graduates in 2024. The schools that have done well in placement despite the bubble are the same set of schools that are highly regarded for engineering and adjacent fields: MIT, calTech, Stanford, UCB, CMU, GaTech, UIUC, &the ivies that are at the top of stem(Princeton, Penn, Cornell, Harvard, Columbia), probably a couple more close. Higher level CS positions available to students with a bachelors have always preferentially hired from these schools. Good but not highly rigorous programs mainly send students to lower-level coding positions after a bachelors. Hiring managers look at the courses taken and the most rigorous schools tend to have the highest percent of students who have taken rigorous coursework, often grad level if available, and have extensive coding experience through on-campus and summer internships/research. It is much more cost effective to recruit at colleges where the vast majority of students are desirable, not just the top 5%.

I doubt Gatech and UIUC can hang in there much longer. Percent employed has decreased dramatically at Gatech.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think students who love CS should major in it. Those who were doing so only for a high paying career (or because their parents were forcing it) should not. There will always be CS jobs, just not as many if the lower level coding types of jobs.

Correct. It is more important than ever to go to a high-quality school that is known for rigorous CS with curriuculum in AI and emphasis on critical thinking and problem solving. The CS bubble started to break for graduates in 2024. The schools that have done well in placement despite the bubble are the same set of schools that are highly regarded for engineering and adjacent fields: MIT, calTech, Stanford, UCB, CMU, GaTech, UIUC, &the ivies that are at the top of stem(Princeton, Penn, Cornell, Harvard, Columbia), probably a couple more close. Higher level CS positions available to students with a bachelors have always preferentially hired from these schools. Good but not highly rigorous programs mainly send students to lower-level coding positions after a bachelors. Hiring managers look at the courses taken and the most rigorous schools tend to have the highest percent of students who have taken rigorous coursework, often grad level if available, and have extensive coding experience through on-campus and summer internships/research. It is much more cost effective to recruit at colleges where the vast majority of students are desirable, not just the top 5%.

I doubt Gatech and UIUC can hang in there much longer. Percent employed has decreased dramatically at Gatech.

Yeah, all UIUC has ever done was... invent the web browser (Mosaic). Surely AI can take the place of all future innovations.

[Anonymous]

A machine learning engineer focus seems like a good call for new grads.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A machine learning engineer focus seems like a good call for new grads.

yes, that's what my kid is focusing on. And some universities now have a Masters program in AI. UMD just started one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think students who love CS should major in it. Those who were doing so only for a high paying career (or because their parents were forcing it) should not. There will always be CS jobs, just not as many if the lower level coding types of jobs.

Correct. It is more important than ever to go to a high-quality school that is known for rigorous CS with curriuculum in AI and emphasis on critical thinking and problem solving. The CS bubble started to break for graduates in 2024. The schools that have done well in placement despite the bubble are the same set of schools that are highly regarded for engineering and adjacent fields: MIT, calTech, Stanford, UCB, CMU, GaTech, UIUC, &the ivies that are at the top of stem(Princeton, Penn, Cornell, Harvard, Columbia), probably a couple more close. Higher level CS positions available to students with a bachelors have always preferentially hired from these schools. Good but not highly rigorous programs mainly send students to lower-level coding positions after a bachelors. Hiring managers look at the courses taken and the most rigorous schools tend to have the highest percent of students who have taken rigorous coursework, often grad level if available, and have extensive coding experience through on-campus and summer internships/research. It is much more cost effective to recruit at colleges where the vast majority of students are desirable, not just the top 5%.

I doubt Gatech and UIUC can hang in there much longer. Percent employed has decreased dramatically at Gatech.

this has to be sarcasm

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A machine learning engineer focus seems like a good call for new grads.

yes, that's what my kid is focusing on. And some universities now have a Masters program in AI. UMD just started one.

I wish colleges/universities would go the opposite way. Instead of spinning up new niche majors that will eventually be pointless, focus on the liberal arts (broadly). When treated as a science, CS is a liberal art. Teach kids how to actually think and learn and grow. Then they can adapt to the changes in the job market as they come.

Picking up individual technical skills is a piece of cake once you understand the logic and algorithms and engineering principals that underlie them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A machine learning engineer focus seems like a good call for new grads.

yes, that's what my kid is focusing on. And some universities now have a Masters program in AI. UMD just started one.

I wish colleges/universities would go the opposite way. Instead of spinning up new niche majors that will eventually be pointless, focus on the liberal arts (broadly). When treated as a science, CS is a liberal art. Teach kids how to actually think and learn and grow. Then they can adapt to the changes in the job market as they come.

Picking up individual technical skills is a piece of cake once you understand the logic and algorithms and engineering principals that underlie them.

Yes, we need more liberal arts majors! Their work cannot be replaced by AI!

[Anonymous]

DS' internship this summer has been verifying AI-generated code. The company does 99% of the low level coding via AI and then it gets verified by interns and entry-level coders.

The nitty gritty coding for the specialized aspects and proprietary aspects of their software products is all still done by humans.

[Anonymous]

Yep.

I was hearing that 2 years ago.

Jobs in CS are also drying up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am stunned with your creativity in starting AI threads. Every day, something different.
Anyway, there will need to be to be someone to “manage” the AI, so com sci majors should be focusing on that.

Maybe she is using AI?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think students who love CS should major in it. Those who were doing so only for a high paying career (or because their parents were forcing it) should not. There will always be CS jobs, just not as many if the lower level coding types of jobs.

Correct. It is more important than ever to go to a high-quality school that is known for rigorous CS with curriuculum in AI and emphasis on critical thinking and problem solving. The CS bubble started to break for graduates in 2024. The schools that have done well in placement despite the bubble are the same set of schools that are highly regarded for engineering and adjacent fields: MIT, calTech, Stanford, UCB, CMU, GaTech, UIUC, &the ivies that are at the top of stem(Princeton, Penn, Cornell, Harvard, Columbia), probably a couple more close. Higher level CS positions available to students with a bachelors have always preferentially hired from these schools. Good but not highly rigorous programs mainly send students to lower-level coding positions after a bachelors. Hiring managers look at the courses taken and the most rigorous schools tend to have the highest percent of students who have taken rigorous coursework, often grad level if available, and have extensive coding experience through on-campus and summer internships/research. It is much more cost effective to recruit at colleges where the vast majority of students are desirable, not just the top 5%.

I doubt Gatech and UIUC can hang in there much longer. Percent employed has decreased dramatically at Gatech.

Yeah, all UIUC has ever done was... invent the web browser (Mosaic). Surely AI can take the place of all future innovations.

I don't know why someone just hasn't asked AI to write the next great app and make millions.