Programming education reaches students unevenly across the United States. In 2019, 35.9% of fourth-graders attended schools offering programming classes, compared with 58.9% of eighth-graders. By 2024, AP Computer Science Principles enrolled 175,261 students and AP Computer Science A enrolled 98,136 students, while 67.2% of AP CSA students and 64.0% of AP CSP students scored at least 3.
Contents
- K–12 course availability
- High-school participation and AP pathways
- Equity in access
- School context and capacity
- Postsecondary degrees
- Assessment and progression
K–12 course availability
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) provides a useful picture of whether programming and computer-science courses were available at students’ schools in 2019. These figures measure school-reported availability, not the number of students who actually enrolled or completed a course.
At the elementary and middle-school levels, access increased with grade level. In 2019, 35.9% of U.S. fourth-graders attended schools that reported offering programming classes. The corresponding share for eighth-graders was 58.9%. That difference describes a 23.0-percentage-point gap in reported availability between the two grades. NCES, 2019
For 12th-graders, 43.8% attended schools offering any computer-science course lasting at least one semester. Within that group, 23.2% attended schools offering AP Computer Science A, while 37.3% attended schools offering computer-science courses other than AP CSA. These categories can overlap, so they should not be added together as separate student populations. NCES, 2019
A separate national principal survey from 2016 found that 57% of principals reported that their school offered at least one computer-science course. Forty percent reported offering a course that included computer programming. At the high-school level, 75% of principals reported offering at least one computer-science course. The survey’s date and method differ from the NCES 2019 student-based figures, so the percentages are best read as complementary measures rather than a single trend line. National Science Board, S&E Indicators 2018
High-school participation and AP pathways
The College Board’s 2024 AP administration shows that programming-related study has two substantial AP pathways. AP Computer Science Principles had 175,261 students, while AP Computer Science A had 98,136 students. CSP therefore had the larger reported enrollment in that administration, although the two courses have different curricula and should not be treated as interchangeable measures of programming experience. College Board, Program Summary Report
The participation profile also differed by sex. AP CSA included 71,600 male students and 25,811 female students. AP CSP included 113,551 male students and 60,259 female students. The supplied College Board counts identify these groups, but they do not by themselves explain why participation differs or measure students outside the reported categories.
Grade distribution shows that CSP reached students earlier and more broadly across high school. AP CSA included 2,488 ninth-graders and 39,156 11th-graders. AP CSP included 27,837 ninth-graders, 52,411 10th-graders, and 52,205 11th-graders. These figures support a distinction between an introductory or broadly accessible pathway and a more concentrated course-taking pattern, but they do not establish a required sequence between the exams. College Board, Program Summary Report
The earlier NCES availability data helps put these participation counts in context. A school can offer a course without every student enrolling, and AP participation counts include students who reached an AP examination rather than all students exposed to computing concepts. Availability, enrollment, and assessment results are separate stages of the education pathway.
Equity in access
Access to programming education varied across student groups in the 2019 NCES data. Among fourth-graders, 38.0% of White students attended schools offering programming classes, compared with 30.3% of Black students, 33.1% of Hispanic students, and 49.1% of Asian students. The highest and lowest reported shares differed by 18.8 percentage points. NCES, 2019
The same measure was reported for selected student characteristics. Programming classes were available at the schools attended by 32.3% of fourth-graders identified as English-language learners and 34.9% of fourth-graders identified as students with disabilities. Among fourth-graders eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, the share was 30.1%; for those not eligible, it was 39.9%. These are school-offering measures, so they indicate differences in institutional access rather than differences in individual interest or ability.
At grade 12, 44.7% of White students attended schools offering any computer-science course of at least one semester, compared with 35.0% of Black students. The measure covers any qualifying computer-science course, not specifically programming or AP CSA. Comparing the fourth-grade programming measure with the 12th-grade course measure would mix different grades and course definitions.
These gaps matter because a course cannot be taken at a school where it is unavailable. At the same time, availability is only one part of access. Enrollment capacity, scheduling, transportation, prior preparation, advising, and confidence can all affect participation, but the supplied figures do not quantify those additional barriers.
School context and capacity
School size and grade level were associated with computer-science course availability in the 2016 principal survey. Seventy-eight percent of principals at schools with at least 1,000 students reported offering at least one computer-science course. Among schools with fewer than 500 students, 47% reported offering one. The difference between the two reported shares was 31 percentage points. National Science Board, S&E Indicators 2018
Availability also differed by school level. Thirty-nine percent of elementary-school principals reported offering at least one computer-science course, compared with 51% of middle-school principals. These figures align directionally with the 2019 student-based pattern in which eighth-graders were more likely than fourth-graders to attend schools offering programming classes, though the survey years and units of analysis differ.
Principals at schools offering no computer science most often identified staffing and resources as obstacles. Sixty-three percent cited a lack of teachers with the necessary skills. Fifty-five percent cited insufficient funds to train or hire a teacher, and 50% cited insufficient schedule time for subjects without testing requirements. The responses describe reported barriers, not independently measured shortages or costs.
Geography was another reported dimension of access in 2019. Among 12th-graders in towns, 34.9% attended schools offering any computer-science course of at least one semester. In remote areas, the share was 27.2%. Because these categories cover only the listed geographic contexts and the measure is school offering, the figures should not be interpreted as enrollment rates. NCES, 2019
| School or student context | Reported share with course access | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Fourth-graders, all students: programming | 35.9% | 2019 |
| Eighth-graders, all students: programming | 58.9% | 2019 |
| 12th-graders, all students: any computer science | 43.8% | 2019 |
| Schools with at least 1,000 students | 78% | 2016 |
| Schools with fewer than 500 students | 47% | 2016 |
| 12th-graders in towns: any computer science | 34.9% | 2019 |
| 12th-graders in remote areas: any computer science | 27.2% | 2019 |
Postsecondary degrees
The education pipeline extends beyond school courses into formal computer-and-information-sciences degrees. U.S. postsecondary institutions conferred 108,503 bachelor’s degrees in computer and information sciences in the 2021–22 academic year. Men earned 83,961 of those degrees and women earned 24,542; women represented 22.6% of recipients. NCES, Degrees in computer and information sciences
At graduate levels, institutions conferred 51,338 computer-and-information-sciences master’s degrees in 2021–22, including 17,439 earned by women. They also conferred 2,790 doctorates, including 716 earned by women. These totals refer to degree conferrals in the broad computer-and-information-sciences field, not only programming-specialist programs.
The narrower programming classifications show smaller counts. Computer programming/programmer, general accounted for 1,974 bachelor’s degrees, including 364 earned by women. Computer programming, specific applications accounted for 284, including 52 earned by women. Computer game programming accounted for 175, including 20 earned by women. Computer programming, other accounted for 15, including 2 earned by women. NCES, Degrees by field of study
Because the programming categories are specific fields within a much broader degree classification, their totals should not be used as a substitute for all undergraduate computer-science production. They do, however, show how much the measured total changes when the definition moves from the broad field to named programming programs.
Assessment and progression
In the 2015 NAEP grade-12 student survey, 22% of students reported taking a computer-programming course during high school. This self-reported course-taking measure is distinct from school availability and from AP examination participation. National Science Board, S&E Indicators 2018
The same source reports outcomes for the fall-2009 ninth-graders followed through 2013 in the HSLS:09 cohort. Forty-seven percent earned credit in computer and information sciences, while 15% earned credit in engineering and technology. The cohort averaged 1.0 high-school credit in computer and information sciences and 1.3 credits in engineering and technology. These are cohort measures for the stated follow-up period, not current national rates.
Policy recognition expanded during the period covered by the source. In 2013, 12 states allowed a computer-science course to count toward high-school graduation requirements. By 2017, 31 states and the District of Columbia allowed this. The figures describe policy status in those years and do not measure how many students used the option. National Science Board, S&E Indicators 2018
AP examination results provide one recent achievement snapshot. On the May 2024 AP Computer Science A exam, 67.2% of 98,136 students scored 3 or higher, and the mean score was 3.18. On the May 2024 AP Computer Science Principles exam, 64.0% of 175,261 students scored 3 or higher, and the mean score was 2.90. These results describe students taking the exams in May 2024; they are not estimates of all students studying programming. College Board, Student Score Distributions: AP Exams—May 2024
Taken together, the statistics describe a pathway with measurable growth from school offerings to AP participation and postsecondary degrees, but with substantial differences in who has access and which course options are available. Each measure has a defined period, population, and course boundary, so comparisons are most useful when those definitions remain explicit.