Mississippi
Source: IPEDS Completions, 3-yr avg AY 2022–25 (NCES; 2024–25 provisional), bachelor’s degrees, CIP 14 + 11; China 33.2%: PRC Ministry of Education, 2022 bachelor’s graduates by discipline (NSF NCSES S&E Indicators Fig. HED-30: 32.8%, 2020); Population: Census NST-EST2025.
Mississippi at China’s rate would graduate 5,085 engineers a year. It graduates 1,336.
Mississippi produces 1,336 engineering and computer science bachelor's degrees a year out of 15,315 total, among the weakest engineering producers in the country, from 11 institutions. At China's rate it would produce 5,085. Output is growing (+13.6% over three years). Gap Score: 26% of the China benchmark. Its own economy is projected to open 2,350 engineering, computing and technician jobs a year through 2034; in-state degrees, associate and bachelor's together, cover 85% of them.
The gap against China’s benchmark
Three-year trend: eng+CS share of degrees
Mississippi is missing 3,748 engineers a year at China's rate, roughly 4x the annual output of Mississippi State University.
Where Mississippi’s engineers are made.
11 institutions produce engineering or computer science bachelor’s degrees in Mississippi. The top 8 account for 99% of output.
Every producing institution. Circle area = eng+CS bachelor’s degrees per year
Top producers
| # | Institution | Eng+CS / yr | % of its degrees |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mississippi State University | 843 | 19.2% |
| 2 | University of Mississippi | 227 | 5.7% |
| 3 | University of Southern Mississippi | 142 | 5.6% |
| 4 | Jackson State University | 71 | 8.6% |
| 5 | Mississippi Christian University | 18 | 3.1% |
| 6 | Alcorn State University | 13 | 2.8% |
| 7 | Belhaven University | 10 | 2.9% |
| 8 | Mississippi Valley State University | 5 | 2.4% |
Jobs vs. degrees
Mississippi's own labor-market projection, 2024–2034, for engineers, computer occupations and engineering technicians, against the degrees the state produces at every level.
Openings against output
Where the openings are
| Occupation | Openings / yr |
|---|---|
| Software Developers | 310 |
| Computer User Support Specialists | 230 |
| Industrial Engineers | 190 |
| Civil Engineers | 160 |
| Computer Systems Analysts | 160 |
| Computer Network Support Specialists | 140 |
Coverage: degrees ÷ openings
Openings are the state labor agency’s own 10-year projection: new jobs plus replacing workers who retire or leave the field (BLS method). Not every opening goes to a new graduate, so this is a coverage measure; it does not count vacant positions. Occupations: engineers (SOC 17-2), computer occupations (SOC 15-12) and engineering technicians (SOC 17-3, the associate-degree tier), the jobs CIP 14 + 11 degrees feed; degrees here include associate degrees to match. Source: Mississippi labor-market projections via Projections Central (U.S. Dept. of Labor).
Mississippi's data center incentives outpace its engineering output
Mississippi has put its largest incentives behind hyperscale data centers and Navy shipbuilding, backing them with special legislative sessions, decade-long tax exemptions and state loans. The state graduates about 1,336 engineering and computer science bachelor's a year, and although output is rising, its share still ranks 43rd of 51.
The drain.
Mississippi loses graduates, and the pool they come from is also shrinking. The state is projected to see a 26% decline in high school graduates by 2041, the second-largest drop in the country, and Census estimates show it has lost residents to other states every year since 2021.
Sources: Mississippi Office of the State Auditor (Sept 2023); Mississippi Free Press; U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 population estimates
Who’s covering it.
Reporters already cover this, but no one has combined it into a single number the way the Index does.
The fix, in Mississippi.
Attach service terms to incentives
Mississippi's data center incentive asks for as few as 20 jobs against exemptions lasting up to 30 years. Add a Digital ROTC clause: firms taking MDA incentives fund community college tuition for technical students who commit to a service term in state, so the exemption produces graduates as well as buildings.
Fund a service corps at MCC
Compass Datacenters is already paying full tuition for the first cohort of the 14-week MEI Data Center Pathway at Meridian Community College. Make that the template statewide across the community college system, with tuition covered in exchange for two years of service at a Mississippi employer or public agency.
Aim MAI-TAP at retention
The $9.1 million Mississippi AI Talent Accelerator sent $2.2 million to Mississippi State and money to seven other campuses, but funds programs without any service commitment. Convert part of it into service-for-tuition scholarships for engineering and computer science students, paid back in years worked in Mississippi rather than dollars.
What Digital ROTC would fund
Digital ROTC: federal student loans that cover two years of engineering, computer science, or cybersecurity school at a community college, whether those years end in an associate degree or transfer into a bachelor’s program. The loans are forgiven in full after 24 to 36 months of service in government technology roles. In Mississippi, 33% of engineering-track credentials are associate degrees today. Digital ROTC is built to expand that community-college route.