Taulbee Survey 2025: Annual Report

Computing Research Association

Master’s Programs

Summary

This section tracks Master’s-level enrollment and degree production in computer science (CS), computer engineering (CE), and information (IN) programs. The most important findings this year:

  • A significant enrollment decline has hit CS master’s programs. Total CS Master’s enrollment fell roughly 26.2%† in 2025, from a 2024 peak of 35,735† to 26,367†, and newly admitted CS students dropped 10.3%† (Figure M6.a, Figure M5). The larger decline in the total enrollments is likely due to a combination of factors including drastic decline in the new enrollments, degree completions from the peak levels of new enrollments in 2021-2022, and visa/immigration related issues.

  • The student population in CS master’s programs continues to skew heavily international. Among all 2025 respondents, nonresident students made up about 53% of CS master’s enrollment and 59.9% of CS degrees awarded, while Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino and Indigenous/Alaska Master’s enrollment & degree production remain low (generally less than 6% combined) (Table M10.a, Table M3.a).

  • Degree production is still near record highs. CS Master’s degrees awarded reached 16,001† in 2025, up 62.5%† over five years and just off the 2024 peak (Figure M1.a). Because degrees lag enrollment, the 2025 enrollment drop has not yet reached the degree count; it likely will within a year or two.

How to interpret the data in this section. Charts that show a trend over time are based on a longitudinal cohort of 91 units that reported a complete degrees-awarded + enrollment pair for at least one Master’s field (CS, CE, or IN) in every year from 2020 to 2025. This is a change from prior years, when trends were reported as the combined totals of all responding units. Any statistic drawn from this section cohort is flagged with a dagger (†). Most tables describe only the most recent year (2025) reflecting all responding units for that year. See Section Cohort for how the cohort compares to the full sample.

New Enrollment

Newly admitted CS master’s students grew 65.5%† from 2020 to 2025 but fell 10.3%† this year, well off their 2022 peak (Figure M5). The key context is international dependence: among all 2025 respondents, 62.6% of newly admitted CS master’s students came from outside North America (Table M5.b).

Table M5: Newly Admitted Master's Students by Unit Type (2025)
Computer Science
Computer Engineering
Information
Total
Unit Type Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit
CS 16,030 96 167.0 137 12 11.4 1,194 17 70.2 17,361 97 179.0
CE - - - 106 1 106.0 - - - 106 1 106.0
IN 123 2 61.5 1 1 1.0 1,857 11 168.8 1,981 11 180.1
CA 544 8 68.0 - - - - - - 544 8 68.0
Total 16,697 106 157.5 244 14 17.4 3,051 28 109.0 19,992 117 170.9
Table M5.a: Newly Admitted but Deferred Master's Students by Unit Type (2025)
Computer Science
Computer Engineering
Information
Total
Unit Type Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit
CS 2,683 81 33.1 71 12 5.9 144 14 10.3 2,898 82 35.3
CE - - - - 1 0.0 - - - - 1 0.0
IN 22 1 22.0 - - - 366 9 40.7 388 9 43.1
CA 191 8 23.9 - - - - - - 191 8 23.9
Total 2,896 90 32.2 71 13 5.5 510 23 22.2 3,477 100 34.8

By Residency

International students made up the majority of CS Master’s admissions. Among all 2025 respondents, 62.6% of newly admitted CS students came from outside North America, versus 36.2% in information and 30.7% in computer engineering (Table M5.b). This concentration is what makes CS master’s enrollment so sensitive to changes in visa and immigration policy.

Table M5.b: Newly Admitted Master's Students from Outside North America by Unit Type (2025)
Computer Science
Computer Engineering
Information
Total
Unit Type Total # Units Outside NA % Outside NA Total # Units Outside NA % Outside NA Total # Units Outside NA % Outside NA Total # Units Outside NA % Outside NA
CS 16,030 96 10,131 63.2% 137 12 75 54.7% 1,194 17 502 42.0% 17,361 97 10,708 61.7%
CE - - - - 106 1 - 0.0% - - - - 106 1 - 0.0%
IN 123 2 55 44.7% 1 1 - 0.0% 1,857 11 603 32.5% 1,981 11 658 33.2%
CA 544 8 270 49.6% - - - - - - - - 544 8 270 49.6%
Total 16,697 106 10,456 62.6% 244 14 75 30.7% 3,051 28 1,105 36.2% 19,992 117 11,636 58.2%

Total Enrollment

By Faculty Size

Master’s enrollment per tenure-track faculty member is far lower than at the bachelor’s level, with a median of about 5-7 students per faculty member among all 2025 respondents, with little difference between public and private programs. The boxplots below show the spread across unit type, control, and Carnegie classification.

By Gender

Among all 2025 respondents, women made up 26.0% of known-gender CS master’s enrollment (Table M9.a), 22.4% in CE (Table M9.b), and 49.8% in IN (Table M9.c), making information essentially gender-balanced and computer engineering the least balanced. The longitudinal cohort shows the 2025 contraction fell especially hard on females in CS: the number of females enrolled in CS dropped 34%† this year (Figure M9.a), an even steeper fall than the overall CS enrollment decline.

Table M9.a: Master's Enrollment in Computer Science (CS) by Gender (2025)
Gender CS Master's Enrollment CS %
Male 41,525 73.9%
Female 14,625 26.0%
Nonbinary/Other 68 0.1%
Total Known Gender 56,218
Gender Unknown 2,033
Total 58,251
Table M9.b: Master's Enrollment in Computer Engineering (CE) by Gender (2025)
Gender CE Master's Enrollment CE %
Male 703 77.5%
Female 203 22.4%
Nonbinary/Other 1 0.1%
Total Known Gender 907
Gender Unknown 154
Total 1,061
Table M9.c: Master's Enrollment in Information (IN) by Gender (2025)
Gender IN Master's Enrollment IN %
Male 5,052 50.0%
Female 5,034 49.8%
Nonbinary/Other 26 0.3%
Total Known Gender 10,112
Gender Unknown 1,021
Total 11,133

By Race/Ethnicity

The defining feature of master’s demographics is the size of the nonresident (international) student population. Among all 2025 respondents, nonresident students accounted for about 53% of CS master’s enrollment (Table M10.a). Among domestic students, White (15.8%) and Asian (15.7%) students lead, while Black (2.1%) and Hispanic (3.8%) participation is markedly lower than at the bachelor’s level.

Table M10.a: Master's Enrollment in Computer Science (CS) by Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Race/Ethnicity CS Master's Enrollment % of Total
Resident, White 9,231 15.8%
Resident, Asian 9,130 15.7%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 2,189 3.8%
Resident, Black or African American 1,212 2.1%
Resident, More than One Race 943 1.6%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 19 0.0%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 32 0.1%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 1,767 3.0%
Total Resident 24,523 42.1%
Nonresident 30,853 53.0%
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 2,875
Total 58,251
Table M10.b: Master's Enrollment in Computer Engineering (CE) by Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Race/Ethnicity CE Master's Enrollment % of Total
Resident, White 133 12.5%
Resident, Asian 93 8.8%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 40 3.8%
Resident, Black or African American 18 1.7%
Resident, More than One Race 11 1.0%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 0 0.0%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 0 0.0%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 5 0.5%
Total Resident 300 28.3%
Nonresident 597 56.3%
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 164
Total 1,061
Table M10.c: Master's Enrollment in Information (IN) by Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Race/Ethnicity IN Master's Enrollment % of Total
Resident, White 2,520 22.6%
Resident, Asian 1,461 13.1%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 578 5.2%
Resident, Black or African American 538 4.8%
Resident, More than One Race 245 2.2%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 18 0.2%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 13 0.1%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 298 2.7%
Total Resident 5,671 50.9%
Nonresident 4,111 36.9%
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 1,351
Total 11,133

By Gender & Race/Ethnicity

The figures below reflect the same two patterns: a large international student population, and a domestic student body that skews White and Asian and, outside of information, predominantly male (Figure M8.a).

Table M8.a: Master's Enrollment in Computer Science by Gender and Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Residency and Race/Ethnicity Male % of M Female % of F NB/Other % of NBO N/R Total Total %
Nonresident 21,341 54.3% 9,125 66.1% 22 40.0% 365 30,853 57.6%
Resident, Asian 6,667 17.0% 2,426 17.6% 12 21.8% 25 9,130 17.0%
Resident, Black or African American 884 2.2% 317 2.3% 1 1.8% 10 1,212 2.3%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 1,805 4.6% 365 2.6% 4 7.3% 15 2,189 4.1%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 15 0.0% 2 0.0% 0 0.0% 2 19 0.0%
Resident, More than One Race 780 2.0% 158 1.1% 2 3.6% 3 943 1.8%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 28 0.1% 3 0.0% 0 0.0% 1 32 0.1%
Resident, White 7,775 19.8% 1,408 10.2% 14 25.5% 34 9,231 17.2%
Total Residency & Ethnicity Known 39,295 13,804 55 455 53,609
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 947 2.4% 468 3.4% 4 7.3% 1,456 2,875 5.4%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 1,283 3.3% 353 2.6% 9 16.4% 122 1,767 3.3%
Total 41,525 14,625 68 2,033 58,251
Table M8.b: Master's Enrollment in Computer Engineering (CE) by Gender and Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Residency and Race/Ethnicity Male % of M Female % of F NB/Other % of NBO N/R Total Total %
Nonresident 435 63.0% 162 81.0% 0 0.0% 0 597 66.9%
Resident, Asian 78 11.3% 15 7.5% 0 0.0% 0 93 10.4%
Resident, Black or African American 15 2.2% 3 1.5% 0 0.0% 0 18 2.0%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 35 5.1% 5 2.5% 0 0.0% 0 40 4.5%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0 0.0%
Resident, More than One Race 9 1.3% 2 1.0% 0 0.0% 0 11 1.2%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0 0.0%
Resident, White 119 17.2% 13 6.5% 1 100.0% 0 133 14.9%
Total Residency & Ethnicity Known 691 200 1 0 892
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 9 1.3% 1 0.5% 0 0.0% 154 164 18.4%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 3 0.4% 2 1.0% 0 0.0% 0 5 0.6%
Total 703 203 1 154 1,061
Table M8.c: Master's Enrollment in Information (IN) by Gender and Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Residency and Race/Ethnicity Male % of M Female % of F NB/Other % of NBO N/R Total Total %
Nonresident 2,073 45.9% 2,027 42.2% 11 7.7% 0 4,111 43.3%
Resident, Asian 731 16.2% 703 14.6% 23 16.1% 4 1,461 15.4%
Resident, Black or African American 239 5.3% 291 6.1% 6 4.2% 2 538 5.7%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 273 6.1% 289 6.0% 15 10.5% 1 578 6.1%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 12 0.3% 4 0.1% 2 1.4% 0 18 0.2%
Resident, More than One Race 104 2.3% 130 2.7% 9 6.3% 2 245 2.6%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 5 0.1% 7 0.1% 0 0.0% 1 13 0.1%
Resident, White 1,075 23.8% 1,353 28.2% 77 53.8% 15 2,520 26.6%
Total Residency & Ethnicity Known 4,512 4,804 143 25 9,484
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 380 8.4% 110 2.3% 861 602.1% 0 1,351 14.2%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 160 3.5% 120 2.5% 17 11.9% 1 298 3.1%
Total 5,052 5,034 1,021 26 11,133

Disability Accommodations

Disability accommodations reporting for Master’s students remains thin. Only 52 of 141 Taulbee units supplied disability data in this year’s survey, with 2.6% of students being reported as having disability accommodations. Future Taulbee respondents may find Dr. Richard Ladner’s article here on how participating institutions can improve the reporting of this data.

Table M.2a.1: Disability Accommodations in Master's Programs (2025)
Metric Value
Number of Units 54
Average Number of Students Per Unit with Accommodations 10.4
Percent of Enrollment With Accommodations 2.4%
Total with Accommodations 563
Total Enrollment 23,904
Percent of Units Reporting Zero Accommodations 53.7%
Max Unit Percent of Students with Accommodations 18.9%

Degree Production

Degree production still reflects the pre-2025 boom. Across the longitudinal cohort, CS master’s degrees rose to 16,001† in 2025, up 62.5%† over five years, and information degrees reached a record 3,019† (+73.7%†) (Figure M1.a). Because degrees trail enrollment, the steep 2025 enrollment decline has not yet shown up here; CS degree counts are likely to soften over the next one to two years.

By Faculty Size

By Gender

The gender split of degrees awarded mirrors enrollment. Among all 2025 respondents, females earned 28.1% of known-gender CS master’s degrees (Table M2.a), 16.5% in CE (Table M2.b), and 51.3% in IN (Table M2.c). Information is the only field where females earned a majority of master’s degrees.

Table M2.a: Master's Degrees Awarded in Computer Science (CS) by Gender (2025)
Gender CS Master's Awarded CS %
Male 15,651 71.7%
Female 6,140 28.1%
Nonbinary/Other 26 0.1%
Total Known Gender 21,817
Gender Unknown 1,363
Total 23,180
Table M2.b: Master's Degrees Awarded in Computer Engineering (CE) by Gender (2025)
Gender CE Master's Awarded CE %
Male 354 83.3%
Female 70 16.5%
Nonbinary/Other 1 0.2%
Total Known Gender 425
Gender Unknown 83
Total 508
Table M2.c: Master's Degrees Awarded in Information (IN) by Gender (2025)
Gender IN Master's Awarded IN %
Male 2,208 48.4%
Female 2,341 51.3%
Nonbinary/Other 12 0.3%
Total Known Gender 4,561
Gender Unknown 712
Total 5,273

By Race/Ethnicity

Nonresident students earned the majority of CS master’s degrees, which is about 60% among all 2025 respondents (Table M3.a), an even higher share than of enrollment. CS Master’s degrees earned by Black/African American (1.2%), Hispanic/Latino (2.3%), and Indigenous/Alaskan Native (<0.1%) students were correspondingly small.

Table M3.a: Master's Degrees Awarded in Computer Science (CS) by Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Race/Ethnicity CS Master's Awarded % of Total
Resident, White 2,927 12.6%
Resident, Asian 3,156 13.6%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 533 2.3%
Resident, Black or African American 285 1.2%
Resident, More than One Race 286 1.2%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 10 0.0%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 7 0.0%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 418 1.8%
Total Resident 7,622 32.9%
Nonresident 13,883 59.9%
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 1,675
Total 23,180
Table M3.b: Master's Degrees Awarded in Computer Engineering (CE) by Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Race/Ethnicity CE Master's Awarded % of Total
Resident, White 59 11.6%
Resident, Asian 46 9.1%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 18 3.5%
Resident, Black or African American 5 1.0%
Resident, More than One Race 5 1.0%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 0 0.0%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 0 0.0%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 1 0.2%
Total Resident 134 26.4%
Nonresident 287 56.5%
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 87
Total 508
Table M3.c: Master's Degrees Awarded in Information (IN) by Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Race/Ethnicity IN Master's Awarded % of Total
Resident, White 943 17.9%
Resident, Asian 597 11.3%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 193 3.7%
Resident, Black or African American 190 3.6%
Resident, More than One Race 106 2.0%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 8 0.2%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 5 0.1%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 132 2.5%
Total Resident 2,174 41.2%
Nonresident 2,260 42.9%
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 839
Total 5,273

By Gender & Race/Ethnicity

As with enrollment, the breakdown of degrees awarded by gender & race/ethnicity were predominantly by nonresident students, with domestic graduates skewing White and Asian and, outside of information, predominantly male (Figure M7.a).

Table M7.a: Master's Degrees Awarded in Computer Science (CS) by Gender and Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Residency and Race/Ethnicity Male % of M Female % of F NB/Other % of NBO N/R Total Total %
Nonresident 9,463 63.2% 4,231 71.9% 10 47.6% 179 13,883 65.8%
Resident, Asian 2,245 15.0% 893 15.2% 6 28.6% 12 3,156 15.0%
Resident, Black or African American 186 1.2% 93 1.6% 0 0.0% 6 285 1.4%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 437 2.9% 87 1.5% 2 9.5% 7 533 2.5%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 9 0.1% 1 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 10 0.0%
Resident, More than One Race 231 1.5% 52 0.9% 0 0.0% 3 286 1.4%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 6 0.0% 1 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 7 0.0%
Resident, White 2,388 16.0% 527 9.0% 3 14.3% 9 2,927 13.9%
Total Residency & Ethnicity Known 14,965 5,885 21 216 21,087
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 382 2.6% 174 3.0% 3 14.3% 1,116 1,675 7.9%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 304 2.0% 81 1.4% 2 9.5% 31 418 2.0%
Total 15,651 6,140 26 1,363 23,180
Table M7.b: Master's Degrees Awarded in Computer Engineering (CE) by Gender and Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Residency and Race/Ethnicity Male % of M Female % of F NB/Other % of NBO N/R Total Total %
Nonresident 232 66.1% 55 80.9% 0 0.0% 0 287 68.3%
Resident, Asian 41 11.7% 5 7.4% 0 0.0% 0 46 11.0%
Resident, Black or African American 4 1.1% 1 1.5% 0 0.0% 0 5 1.2%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 18 5.1% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 18 4.3%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0 0.0%
Resident, More than One Race 4 1.1% 1 1.5% 0 0.0% 0 5 1.2%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0 0.0%
Resident, White 52 14.8% 6 8.8% 1 100.0% 0 59 14.0%
Total Residency & Ethnicity Known 351 68 1 0 420
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 2 0.6% 2 2.9% 0 0.0% 83 87 20.7%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 1 0.3% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 1 0.2%
Total 354 70 1 83 508
Table M8.c: Master's Degrees Awarded in Information (IN) by Gender and Race/Ethnicity (2025)
Residency and Race/Ethnicity Male % of M Female % of F NB/Other % of NBO N/R Total Total %
Nonresident 1,082 54.6% 1,165 51.9% 0 0.0% 13 2,260 52.5%
Resident, Asian 298 15.0% 288 12.8% 1 9.1% 10 597 13.9%
Resident, Black or African American 98 4.9% 90 4.0% 0 0.0% 2 190 4.4%
Resident, Hispanic or Latino 84 4.2% 103 4.6% 1 9.1% 5 193 4.5%
Resident, Indigenous or Alaska Native 6 0.3% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 2 8 0.2%
Resident, More than One Race 40 2.0% 58 2.6% 3 27.3% 5 106 2.5%
Resident, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 2 0.1% 3 0.1% 0 0.0% 0 5 0.1%
Resident, White 371 18.7% 538 24.0% 6 54.5% 28 943 21.9%
Total Residency & Ethnicity Known 1,981 2,245 11 65 4,302
Residency Status and Race/Ethnicity Not Available 145 7.3% 50 2.2% 0 0.0% 644 839 19.5%
Resident, Race/Ethnicity Not Available 82 4.1% 46 2.0% 1 9.1% 3 132 3.1%
Total 2,208 2,341 12 712 5,273

Degrees Expected Next Year

Programs’ own projections already hint at the coming slowdown. Across the longitudinal cohort, units expect 10,110† CS master’s degrees next year, which is still 52.1%† above 2020, but 4%† below last year’s projection and off the 2024 peak (Figure M4.a).

Table M4: Master's Degrees Expected Next Year by Unit Type (2025)
Computer Science
Computer Engineering
Information
Total
Unit Type Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit Total # Units Avg per Unit
CS 18,052 94 192.0 198 13 15.2 1,238 18 68.8 19,488 95 205.1
CE - - - 100 1 100.0 - - - 100 1 100.0
IN 119 2 59.5 2 1 2.0 2,704 11 245.8 2,825 11 256.8
CA 612 7 87.4 - - - - - - 612 7 87.4
Total 18,783 103 182.4 300 15 20.0 3,942 29 135.9 23,025 114 202.0

Section Cohort

Trend analyses in this section use a longitudinal cohort of 91 units that, in each year from 2020 to 2025, reported a complete degrees-awarded + enrollment pair for at least one field (CS, CE, or IN). The table below compares the composition of this cohort to the full sample for the most recent year so readers can judge representativeness. Individual figures may have additional missingness for specific variables within this cohort; each figure’s footnote reports how many cohort units contributed.

Table M0: Master's Section Cohort Composition vs. Full Sample (2025)
Section Cohort
Full Sample (2025)
N % N %
All Units 91 100.0% 141 100.0%
Control
Public 66 72.5% 104 73.8%
Private 25 27.5% 37 26.2%
Unit Type
CS 82 90.1% 120 85.1%
CE 0 0.0% 2 1.4%
IN 6 6.6% 11 7.8%
CA 3 3.3% 8 5.7%
Carnegie Classification
R1 74 84.1% 109 82.6%
R2 14 15.9% 21 15.9%
M1 0 0.0% 1 0.8%
D/PU 0 0.0% 1 0.8%
Unit Size
1-25 9 9.9% 23 16.3%
26-75 50 54.9% 75 53.2%
76-100 16 17.6% 22 15.6%
>100 16 17.6% 21 14.9%
Locale
City 67 76.1% 103 77.4%
Suburb 19 21.6% 24 18.0%
Town 2 2.3% 6 4.5%