Tech degrees are no longer niche
Computing and IT degrees in the US have more than doubled since 2013, pushing tech into the top tier of degree subjects.
Degree choice can be a bet on the future economy.
How much will I earn? Will I have a job for life? Where is opportunity moving?
I asked myself those questions 25 years ago. I chose Economics at Bath University. At the time, that felt like the sensible option.
Hindsight suggests I should have done Computing & IT. Whoops.
In 2013, Computing & IT was still a relatively small degree category in the US. By 2024, that had changed. The number of Computing & IT graduates had more than doubled, climbing from around 148,000 to 332,000.
That now puts tech ahead of education, psychology, engineering, social sciences and the humanities. This matters because students are not waiting for economists, consultants or politicians to tell them where opportunity is moving. They have already figured it out.
And this was happening long before generative AI exploded into view. The talent pipeline has been shifting towards technology for more than a decade.
Once that pipeline changes, the economy changes with it.