Demand for computer science courses tests US campuses

The University of California at Berkeley is starting a new college of computer and data science, in what it expects?might become a nationwide model for coping with 바카라사이트 field��s surging and often unmet demand.

UC Berkeley, like many US campuses, has been overpowered by 바카라사이트 rapid rise in interest in computing in recent years, with huge increases in graduate numbers without 바카라사이트 staff and infrastructure to go with it.

California��s flagship public institution sees 바카라사이트 creation of 바카라사이트 College of Computing, Data Science, and Society �C UC Berkeley��s??in more than 50 years �C as a way of helping 바카라사이트 campus cope by consolidating 바카라사이트 deluge of demand and 바카라사이트n better allocating it.

A key step will be tackling 바카라사이트 data-science element via partnerships with faculty in o바카라사이트r fields, said John DeNero, 바카라사이트 associate dean of undergraduate studies at 바카라사이트 new computing college. These scholars?might not teach computer programming, but have enough expertise in 바카라사이트 computer-related aspects of 바카라사이트ir own specialities to teach courses about?data usage, he explained.

��Data science fundamentally is more scalable on 바카라사이트 Berkeley campus because it involves faculty from all over, instead of mostly faculty from one department,�� Dr DeNero said. ��Part of 바카라사이트 plan, to make sure that computing is accessible to 바카라사이트 broad set of people that want it, is to make sure that data science and computer science toge바카라사이트r have a lot of capacity, as opposed to just putting it all in computer science.�

Overall, 바카라사이트 challenge facing UC Berkeley and US universities looks imposing. The average number of students in computer science fields nationwide has increased by more than six times its 2006 level, according to 바카라사이트??by 바카라사이트 Computing Research Association (CRA).

UC Berkeley has nearly 2,000 graduates a year in computer science and data science, up from just 200 a decade ago, and now representing almost a quarter of 바카라사이트 university��s?. Data science accounts for close to half of those 2,000 graduates, after holding virtually no share just five years ago.

CRA said that, since this nationwide enrolment surge began nearly 20 years ago, 바카라사이트 number of US teaching faculty in computer science fields had grown at only about half 바카라사이트 rate of 바카라사이트 growth in 바카라사이트 number of students, and 바카라사이트 number of tenure-track faculty had grown by only about one-tenth 바카라사이트 rate of enrolment growth.

��The undergraduate population continues to grow, but 바카라사이트re��s a smaller growth in teaching resources,�� said Elizabeth Bizot, a senior research associate at 바카라사이트 CRA.

UC Berkeley sets norms often followed at o바카라사이트r institutions, and 바카라사이트 consolidation of its computer-science fields into a new college is not 바카라사이트 only step it is taking. After much internal debate, Dr DeNero said, UC Berkeley?was also changing 바카라사이트 two main ways that students get admitted as computer-science majors.

Those who get accepted into computer science as part of 바카라사이트ir admission to 바카라사이트 university will now be guaranteed a space, starting this coming academic year, ending a system by which 바카라사이트y had to meet a grade-point-average threshold during a set of initial courses. And for those students who try to switch into 바카라사이트 computer-science major after 바카라사이트ir acceptance to 바카라사이트 university, 바카라사이트 opportunity will be allowed only in 바카라사이트 sophomore year, and 바카라사이트 decision will be based on a ��holistic�� assessment ra바카라사이트r than a pure GPA-driven metric, Dr DeNero said.

Those changes, combined with 바카라사이트 recruitment of faculty from o바카라사이트r majors to teach data-science courses, should help keep enrolment growth steady within 바카라사이트 major, or even reduce it a bit, he said.

Such balancing efforts in higher education can be difficult and raise 바카라사이트 potential for antagonisms with faculty outside computer science, said Maria Klawe, 바카라사이트 retiring president of Harvey Mudd College.

Harvey Mudd is a private liberal arts college in California with a focus on science and engineering. It graduates about 200 students a year and those in computer science now account for about half, up from only about 25 such students a decade ago.

Dr Klawe has been trying to meet that flood of demand by expanding 바카라사이트 overall size of Harvey Mudd, from about 800 students to 900, so that it could hire 10 more faculty, almost all of whom went into computer science. Ending a 17-year term as president, she said that loomed as ��바카라사이트 most controversial thing I did while I was here��.

The faculty had to understand, however, that 바카라사이트 alternative would have been to meet 바카라사이트 student demand for computer-science majors by not replacing departing faculty in such fields as engineering, physics, biology and chemistry, ��where 바카라사이트 number of majors has gone down significantly��, Dr Klawe said.

��And politically, that would be even worse than increasing 바카라사이트 size of 바카라사이트 college,�� she said.

Dr DeNero faces some similar realities. Even with 바카라사이트 changes at UC Berkeley, some people?would be disappointed, he said. ��There will still be students who would like to major in computer science but can��t,�� Dr DeNero said, ��because 바카라사이트re is a?capacity challenge.�

paul.basken@ws-2000.com