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The survey shows a weaker early-career market for computer science graduates, while leaving AI’s role in the shift unresolved.
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UK computer science graduates are encountering a narrower first-job market: the latest Graduate Outcomes data puts entry into professional coding at 28%, versus roughly 40% previously, while any graduate-level employment fell to 50% from above 60% two years earlier. The figures cover more than 350,000 respondents surveyed 15 months after graduating in 2024, so they measure early outcomes rather than lifetime careers.
Coding and software development were the fastest-falling graduate occupations in the guide’s data.
Jisc’s Charlie Ball said pure coding roles were especially scarce in 2025, while software-development employment had not disappeared.
Some graduates are shifting toward cybersecurity and network engineering, suggesting technical demand is being redistributed.
The early-career market for UK computer science graduates has weakened sharply. The share entering professional coding or programming jobs fell to 28%, from about 40% previously, according to data used for the 2027 Guardian University Guide.
The drop is not limited to programming. The share of computer science graduates entering any graduate-level job declined from more than 60% two years earlier to 50% in the latest figures. Coding and software development were the fastest-falling occupations for graduates in the guide’s data.
The proportion entering professional coding or programming jobs fell from about 40% previously to 28% in the latest data.
AI is part of the debate because it can produce software and analysis quickly, potentially reducing demand for some entry-level tasks. But the figures do not show that AI caused the employment change. Experts cited in the analysis said there is little evidence to prove causation, even as they see signs that AI may be playing a role.
Charlie Ball, Jisc’s head of labour-market intelligence, said pure coding jobs appeared to be in particularly short supply in 2025. He also said software-development employment had not collapsed entirely.
The Graduate Outcomes survey collected responses from more than 350,000 former students 15 months after they completed their courses in 2024. That makes the findings a view of graduates’ first steps into work, rather than their full careers.
Some computer science graduates are moving into adjacent technical fields, including cybersecurity and network engineering. That suggests a tighter market for pure coding roles does not mean every pathway from a computer science degree has closed.
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