Overview
This short briefing features the latest figures for those studying software engineering in higher education. This supplementary report sits alongside our main Engineering and technology in higher education report and includes the number of entries and demographic characteristics. It is based on data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) for the academic year 2023/24 and Graduate Outcomes survey data for those who graduated in 2022/23.
Software engineering in higher education
Who this is for
- Employers
- Policymakers
- Professional Engineering Institutions
- Researchers
Key findings
- 12,230 students started software engineering courses in higher education in 2023/24
- 6,790 were first degree undergraduates, 180 were studying other undergraduate courses and 5,260 were postgraduate students (taught and research)
- 16.2% of first degree entrants were women
- 17.1% of first degree entrants were from a UK minority ethnic group
- 15.7% of first degree entrants had a known disability
- 13.8% of first degree entrants were from the least advantaged areas in the UK
- 75.0% who graduated from software engineering degrees were in employment 15 months after graduating
