With AI, we can … Prepare students for fast-growing jobs

Computer science and software engineering jobs are changing as the growth of artificial intelligence demands new skills for everything from maintaining complex AI hardware and software systems to developing tools to take the technology even further.

These jobs are also increasing at a rapid pace. Software development jobs are expected to grow nearly 18% from 2023 to 2033, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, while the number of jobs in computer occupations overall is projected to grow by nearly 12%.

To better prepare graduates for new careers and meet surging student interest in those fields, Case Western Reserve University’s Case School of Engineering is adding courses and programs.

It also roughly doubled faculty in the Department of Computer and Data Sciences to 23, with more than half having an expertise in AI.

Interest in the department’s programs has gone “through the roof” in the last five years, said Vipin Chaudhary, PhD, the department chair. From 2019 to 2024, enrollment in the data science and analytics bachelor’s degree program alone grew by 700%. In computer sciences, enrollment in the master’s degree program grew by 103% and in the PhD program by 150%.

^{*Statistics based on enrollment between 2019-2024}

The department is developing an AI major. It already offers an AI minor and will soon add an Applied AI minor—a less technical option for students majoring in non-engineering fields.

Employers have a “tremendous need” for people with AI knowledge not only in computer science, but “in every domain,” Chaudhary said.

“The requirement and the need is huge.”