What Computer Degree Should I Get

One press picks a computer degree to look into, with what the program studies.

Linguistics and computer scienceHuman language and computers: natural language processing, machine learning and syntax.

Next step Not sure about computing? Draw any major

How it works

Sure about computers, unsure which degree? Press the button for a computing program, from computer science to cybersecurity to game design, each with what it studies. The whole list is under the tool, side by side.

Read the full guide

Seven disciplines

Computing Curricula 2020, a report of the Association for Computing Machinery and the IEEE Computer Society, describes seven computing disciplines. Computer engineering integrates hardware, software and signal processing. Computer science develops conceptual foundations. Software engineering addresses large-scale software development. Information technology builds and maintains an organization’s computing and supports its users. Information systems uses computing to change organizations. Cybersecurity explores safety and security across computing. Data science, which the report calls a new area of computing, manages large-scale data, founded in mathematics and statistics.

The federal program list files software and computer engineering under engineering and data science under interdisciplinary studies, so look beyond the computer science department.

Questions and answers

What computer degree should I get?

Decide what you want to do with a computer. Build software: computer science or software engineering. Keep systems running: information technology or networking. Protect them: cybersecurity. Work with data: data science. Build the machine itself: computer engineering.

What is the difference between computer science and information technology?

Computing Curricula 2020 says computer science has the more theoretical focus, with a strong connection to abstract mathematics. Information technology emphasizes the needs of users: developing, maintaining and supporting the computing technology an organization runs on.

Is software engineering the same as computer science?

No. The report calls software engineering an engineering discipline of rigorous methods for designing and constructing software that reliably performs its tasks. It adds that software development is often also a part of computer science and computer engineering programs.

Which computer degrees involve the most hardware?

Computer engineering, which the report says brings together computing and electrical engineering, with a heavy emphasis on mathematics. On this list computer hardware engineering, electrical and computer engineering and the robotics programs sit beside it.

All 57 computer degrees

Building software 9

Applications programming Programming aimed at the problems that one kind of software and its users bring.
Computer and information sciences The broad one: computing, computer science and information science in a single program.
Computer game programming Programming and design for games: game physics, graphics, character and story.
Computer programming Writing and testing programs: software design, low- and high-level languages, troubleshooting.
Computer science Computer theory, computing problems and their solutions, and the design of computer systems.
Computer software technology Hands-on support for software engineers: programming, databases, testing and security.
Computer systems analysis Choosing, setting up and troubleshooting customized computer and software installations.
Platform programming Building software for one platform: industrial, game, mobile, tactile or web.
Software engineering Designing, verifying and maintaining software systems with math and engineering methods.

Running systems and networks 11

Cloud computing Enterprise software on distributed computing: cloud security, servers, web and mobile apps.
Computer installation and repair Assembling, installing, operating, maintaining and repairing computers.
Computer networking and telecommunications Designing and managing linked systems of computers: network theory, security, troubleshooting.
Computer support Helping computer users solve software and hardware problems: help desk and customer service.
Information resources management Planning and managing the information services of an organization, with IT and business together.
Information technology Designing information systems that meet the data and communications needs of an organization.
IT project management Managing technology projects: risk, contracts, quality assurance, finances and teams.
Management information systems Providing and managing the data systems that hold the internal information of a business.
Network and system administration Running the computers of one site: LAN and WAN networking, data backup, security.
Network management Overseeing the systems of a whole organization: upgrades, outages, troubleshooting, budgets.
Web management Building and keeping up web servers and the websites they host, as a webmaster.

Security 4

Cyber and computer forensics Finding, seizing and analyzing digital media in cyber investigations of criminal activity.
Cybersecurity Assessing security needs, recommending safeguards and auditing: cryptography, law, risk.
Cybersecurity defense strategy and policy Strategy, policy and standards for security in cyberspace: incident response and recovery.
Healthcare information privacy and security Designing and running privacy and security programs for healthcare organizations.

Data and AI 12

Artificial intelligence Computers that simulate human learning and reasoning, with natural language processing.
Business analytics Data science applied to business challenges: machine learning, optimization, marketing.
Computational science Scientific computing: numerical modeling, simulation and high performance parallel computing.
Data analytics Applying data science to find insights in data and to identify and predict trends.
Data science Analyzing large-scale data with statistics, computer science and mathematics together.
Data visualization Drawing meaning out of data with visual tools: statistics, graphic design, perception.
Database administration and data warehousing Designing and managing databases, linking data sets and mining them with search tools.
Financial analytics Modeling big financial data, from algorithms to cloud-based financial technologies.
Geographic information science Map-making and the computer analysis of large amounts of geographic data.
Informatics Computer systems seen from the user: how systems store, process and communicate information.
Information science How information is collected, organized, stored, transmitted and used.
Medical informatics Computer science and software engineering applied to medical research and clinical IT.

Design, games and the web 7

Computer graphics The software, hardware and math that show two- and three-dimensional objects on a screen.
Digital arts Computer-made images as an art medium: animation, motion graphics, 3D, web design.
Game and interactive media design Designing, developing and programming games, virtual environments and interactive media.
Human-centered technology design Designing and researching interfaces with the human in mind: usability and perception.
Human-computer interaction How people and technology interact, drawing on computing, engineering and behavioral science.
Modeling, virtual environments and simulation Visual simulation and virtual worlds, with statistics on how people perform in them.
Web and multimedia design Designing and publishing for the web with HTML, CSS, JavaScript and graphics tools.

Hardware and robots 8

Computer engineering Math and science applied to designing computer hardware and software systems.
Computer engineering technology Hands-on support for computer engineers: electronics, prototypes, installation and testing.
Computer hardware engineering Designing computer hardware and peripheral equipment: circuits, chips and system design.
Computer hardware technology Supporting hardware engineers: architecture, processors, peripherals and testing equipment.
Computer systems technology The technical skills behind computer systems: maintenance, problem diagnosis and repair.
Electrical and computer engineering Designing computer systems: architecture, circuits, signal processing, wireless networks.
Mechatronics, robotics and automation engineering Computer-controlled machines with sensors and actuators: robots and automation systems.
Robotics technology Supporting those who develop and use robots: testing, maintenance and control language.

Computing with another subject 6

Accounting and computer science Accounting combined with computer science or computer studies.
Computer teacher education Preparing to teach computer education programs at various educational levels.
Digital humanities New technologies and advanced computing used to investigate questions in the humanities.
Economics and computer science Where computer science meets economics: data mining, algorithms and econometrics.
Linguistics and computer science Human language and computers: natural language processing, machine learning and syntax.
Mathematics and computer science A blend of mathematics and computer science, or a specialty that draws on both.

Facts on this page were checked against the sources named under the list. If you spot a mistake, tell us through the contact page and we will check it and correct the page.

More notes about this page

Results are random and meant for fun, practice and planning. Do not rely on them for a decision that matters.

How this list was compiled: 57 computing programs from the Classification of Instructional Programs, 2020 edition (CIP 2020), of the US National Center for Education Statistics, https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/, a work of the US government. 24 are from series 11 (computer and information sciences and support services); the other 33 are computing programs the list files under engineering, engineering technology, interdisciplinary studies, business, security, the arts and four more series. The list was read in its own table, https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/Files/CIPCode2020.csv, on 2026-10-08. The line under each program is the definition the list gives it, put in our words, and every line was checked against that definition. Left out of series 11: its catch-all rows called "Other" and four programs that train in typing, data entry or one vendor's product (Data Processing, Data Entry, Word Processing, Vendor/Product Certification). The seven disciplines named in the text under the tool are from Computing Curricula 2020 (CC2020), the 31 December 2020 report of the Association for Computing Machinery and the IEEE Computer Society, https://www.acm.org/binaries/content/assets/education/curricula-recommendations/cc2020.pdf, sections 2.3 and 2.4, read on 2026-10-08. The seven groups are ours. The list defines programs at every award level and does not say which schools offer them. No pay, job-outlook or ranking claims. Licence: Facts: US National Center for Education Statistics, public domain. Names, groups and wording: own work.