Computer program degree

Explore programs of your interests with the high-quality standards and flexibility you need to take your career to the next level. Earning a bachelor's degree in computer programming offers many potential benefits, several of which we highlight below. Before applying to any college-level program, students must earn a high school diploma or GED. Most colleges require students to earn at least a 2.

Colleges and universities may also require SAT or ACT scores for admission, but many schools waive this requirement for applicants with a strong academic or personal record. Applicants typically must also submit transcripts, an application fee, personal information, and a personal essay. Many colleges and universities standardize applications through The Common App , allowing student to apply to multiple schools through one application.

Many students complete a bachelor's degree in computer programming to learn new skills and increase their chances of finding a well-paying position immediately after graduation. Other students earn the degree to prepare for graduate school. A bachelor's in computer programming can lead to many different careers in computer programming and related fields. Many graduates work as computer programmers. Graduates can also work as software developers.

While a bachelor's degree does not guarantee a specific salary or position, the following list outlines several common positions for graduates. Some careers in computer science require a master's or Ph. Aside from a graduate degree, computer programming professionals can earn certifications to advance their careers.

Bachelor's in computer programming programs typically comprise credits and take four years of full-time study to complete. Because these programs include mathematics and science courses, many schools offer the degree as a bachelor of science rather than a bachelor of arts.

Courses cover concepts in computer science, programming, and data, along with core topics such as mathematics, science, and English. Learners may also complete a thesis or final project. Graduates pursue leadership positions in fields such as finance, law, nanotechnology, biomedical technology, and many others.

As a result of these extensive, hands-on experiences, the institute consistently ranks at the top of U. News and World Report rankings for its academic excellence and overall quality. Princeton University not only offers a fundamental computer science program, it also allows students to customize their studies in an array of interdisciplinary areas.

The program is highly flexible, allowing students to major in computer science through either the A. Students may design their own programs within a broad framework, and also engage in unique learning experiences such as independent study. The university also offers a certificate program in Applications of Computing. In addition to a flexibly designed, customizable program, students also have the opportunity to engage in advanced research or even entrepreneurial product design.

This allows them to gain experience in the core areas of computer science and their own chosen disciplines. Required courses for the major include:. Students are highly successful upon graduation from this program, with many joining major companies in computing and information technology. Others continue their education with graduate studies at the highest ranked Computer Science graduate programs, or even attend professional schools such as medical school.

The program looks beyond the technology of today and gives students the training necessary to anticipate future developments—as well as to initiate those developments while still enrolled in their studies. The department also features a unique Basic Programming Skills development program for entry-level employment, allowing students to complete the equivalent of a minor to gain some experience in the field. Unlike many institutions of its size and caliber, Berkeley offers the unique distinction of having the majority of its Computer Science courses taught by regular Electrical Engineering and Computer Science faculty.

These teachers are also renowned researchers in the field, teaching classes such as:. This top-ranked program is offered at a vibrant, diverse community in one of the most technologically-influential areas of the world. The program has close ties to local industry, allowing students to explore internships and research in topics such as Artificial Intelligence, Programming Systems, Security, Communications, and many other fields.

The university also features unique joint majors with the Departments of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, and Psychology. Because every program at Yale is ingrained in the liberal arts, students even have the opportunity to complete second majors, such as Economics or even Theater Studies. This program is supplemented by a wide variety of electives, giving students flexibility in designing their degree pathways. Students also have the opportunity to engage in challenging original research under the guidance of a faculty member.

Opportunities exist throughout the year, including over the summer. Required classes include:. This program is highly collaborative, allowing students to work with their peers in the department as well as in other disciplines such as mathematics, statistics, music, business, linguistics, and more.

These collaborations help the program to fit nicely into the diverse, academically rigorous community offered at Yale. As a result, this large research university is one of the few on this list with a prestigious designation as an Ivy League institution. California Institute of Technology offers a Computer Science major that provides students with a solid footing in the mathematical and algorithmic foundations of computing.

Students receive access to cutting-edge research in multiple sub disciplines of Computer Science, and also learn how to apply their understandings of computation to other areas. There is notable flexibility in course scheduling, allowing students to engage in several tracks. These tracks include robotics, graphics, database, and many more. In addition to selecting a track upon which to focus their studies, students also engage in a set of core classes and design a unique capstone project.

This capstone project gives young, aspiring researchers the opportunity to conduct independent work in any area of their choice. Other required classes include:.

While most students will engage in sufficient research throughout the regular duration of their undergraduate studies, the institute also features unique Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships to allow students to gain further experience. Students may also engage in research or internships opportunities outside of the institute, working at external positions that are often paid while gaining vital experience.

Students even have the opportunity to double major, making this one of the most versatile and advanced programs of its kind. The program in Computer Science at Harvard Unviresity is designed for all styles and levels of computer programmers. Most students admitted to this program have little to no experience in the discipline, making it an excellent option for young, aspiring researchers.

Many Computer Science courses at Harvard allow for research experiences, and most students will, at some point in their studies, work one-on-one with faculty to conduct research in all sorts of areas. Common areas of research interest include Architecture, Artificial Intelligence, and Theory of Computation. Students will take a range of courses in the liberal arts, as well as in the overall study of information.

Programming languages are learned and these skills are honed within this program, but are not the sole focus of the concentration. In addition to these core competencies, required courses include:. Harvard features a variety of unique opportunities to tailor their studies towards their interests. For example, motivated students may pursue joint concentrations between Computer Science and another field, allowing them to explore a research problem that bridges the two fields.

The university also features a variety of Active Learning Laboratories and related machine shops, which support students by giving them access to training and hands-on work with state-of-the art instrumentation and advanced fabrication tools.

The undergraduate program at Dartmouth is designed not just to give students experience in modern computation technologies such as hardware and software, but to also give them the tools necessary to innovate and develop exciting new technologies, both on campus and off.

The program focuses on design, implementation, diagnosis, communication, and analysis of computers and computer-related problems. In addition to a standard Computer Science undergraduate program, students may also take additional classes that will count toward a Master of Science degree with concentrations in Digital Arts or Computer Science.

This allows talented students to accelerate their progress towards top-ranked graduate degrees. Recommended courses for the stand-alone major include:. Dartmouth is one of the few universities on this list to offer study abroad programs uniquely designed for Computer Science majors. In small class sizes of less than twenty students, Dartmouth students may take coursework in topics such as Design, Entrepreneurship, Computer Science, Mathematics, and even Hungarian Culture.

These experiences prepare students to work and to program in a highly diverse, rapidly changing global climate. Many students pursue coursework in the humanities and other sciences, providing them the unique flexibility to engage in studies and employment in other fields. Courses are intensive and project-based, and allow students the ability to receive independent study credit through research.

This unparalleled program allows students to conduct part-time or summer jobs in independent computer science research. These experiences helps students gain insight into the issues surrounding the building and maintenance of computer-based systems. This four-year program is broken down into three main components: general education, fine arts, and computer science.

Students will take a range of versatile, dynamic courses, including:. The university encourages students to engage in study abroad and internship opportunities to enhance and broaden their interdisciplinary experiences. Over thirty percent of graduating seniors study abroad at some point, enjoying programs in countries such as the Czech Republic, China, Peru, Italy, Spain, Thailand, Ireland, and Morocco.

Internship opportunities are also encouraged, with students engaging in work experiences at startups, art museums, and a variety of other organizations and companies.

Students are not required to declare this as a major until after the sophomore year, allowing students to gain experience in other fields before moving on to field-specific and intensive coursework. Students will take courses tailored to their career goals, as well as core coursework in topics such as:. Students in this program gain experience through computer science research positions in areas such as Programming Languages, Software Engineering, Algorithms, and many others.

Students may become involved in faculty research either during the academic year or through paid summer internships. As a result, graduates are highly successful at finding positions in practically any industry. Computer Science alumni from Rice University are highly successful, working at global powerhouses such as Amazon, Yahoo!

Many have developed nonprofit and for-profit startups, or even gone on to work for government agencies such as the Department of Defense. The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science at the Georgia Tech College of Computing prepares students with the tools necessary to become successful at innovation and leadership in the field of computing. The degree provides for a great deal of flexibility and customization, allowing students to choose from eight distinct threads.

Threads include media, modeling and simulation, people, intelligence, devices, and several others. The incorporation of threads in course design provides students with the ability to customize their courses towards a specific field of interest, or to prepare them for graduate or doctoral studies. Although specific course schedules will vary depending on the thread chosen, a sample schedule might include coursework in:. Students have multiple opportunities to get involved while studying at Georgia Tech.

Student organizations are a way for students to hone their leadership skills. Students also have the opportunity to participate in internships and cooperative experiences to further develop their skills. In the past, students have worked at organizations that are both local and global, often receiving paid positions.

Founded in , the Department of Computer Science at Brown has a well-developed history of educating innovative information technology researchers, teachers, and practitioners. Students work to integrate computing and algorithmic thinking in other areas such as linguistics, archaeology, mathematics, medicine, and many other fields.

This provides an environment that supports cross-curricular research and innovation at the undergraduate level. Students will take a variety of courses, each built upon a collection of pathways representing different areas of computer science. Generally, students will take a variety of core and sequence-based classes, choosing from concentrations such as software principles, data, or systems, for example. A course schedule might include classes such as:. Undergraduate students at Brown have the ability to engage in world-class learning experiences, both on campus and off.

Students have flown to Singapore to install software, built their own SMS-based commodity exchanges in Ghana, and facilitated many other interactive, relevant experiences as a result of their learnings in Computer Science. Students at Brown are supported by creative, innovative faculty and well-developed, engaging curriculum, allowing them to make a difference both during and after their undergraduate studies.

The Computer Science program at Columbia prepares graduates for a broad range of careers in industry, education, or government, providing them with the skills necessary to become leaders in the field.

These programs combine the advantages of small class sizes with the extensive resources of a large, well-funded research institution. On campus, students have access to a variety of cutting-edge research laboratories and other technological resources to help advance their knowledge and practice with these facilities. Students will take a variety of courses within an integrated curriculum.

This curriculum includes a broad core of eight foundational courses and seven advanced courses chosen from one of six elective tracks. A sample schedule might include classes in the following topics:. Undergraduates expand and demonstrate their learning through a range of research opportunities and participation in student organizations. Popular clubs and organizations include the Association for Computing Machinery, Women in Computer Science, and the Application Development Initiative, all of which allow students to make valuable professional connections that will help them obtain jobs when they graduate.

Duke University offers several courses of study for undergraduates interested in computer science, including a Bachelor of Science, a Bachelor of Arts, a double major with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and a minor in Computer Science. These programs are designed to give students extensive hands-on experience through research, scholarship programs, and internships.

Graduates may also choose to pursue a relevant master's degree, which is a common requirement for computer and information research scientists. These professionals address complex problems by inventing innovative computing designs and new applications for technology. Explore programs of your interests with the high-quality standards and flexibility you need to take your career to the next level.

Computer science bachelor's programs look for candidates with strong academic records and standardized test scores. Applicants typically need a high school diploma or equivalent and a minimum 2. Additionally, candidates may need high school prerequisites in English, natural sciences, social sciences, foreign languages, and math. Most programs allow applicants to submit their application online.

Many schools also require letters of recommendation and an essay. Graduates with an associate degree can pursue some technology-related roles, such as computer systems analyst, web developer, and computer support specialist. However, many entry-level IT and CS job postings expect or require applicants to hold a bachelor's degree. Graduates with a bachelor's degree can work as software developers, database administrators, information security analysts, hardware engineers, or network architects.

Some bachelor's graduates use their degree to qualify for master's programs, which allow for further advancement in the field. For professionals already working in the field, earning a bachelor's degree in computer science can lead to salary advancement or promotion to management-level jobs with more responsibility, such as IT project manager or computer and information systems manager.

Computer programmers write code that drives the functioning of computer applications and software. Potential job titles include database administrator, computer programmer, and software developer. In this course, learners study the design, implementation, and analysis of algorithms and data structures. Learners use data structures to solve computer engineering problems through programming language. Learners discover ways to use algorithms to influence and manipulate structures.

They also use data structures to solve real-world computer science problems. Students should complete introductory IT courses before taking this course. An upper-division course taken after introductory programming classes, this course teaches students to analyze problems and situations to determine the best programming language to use.

This course covers the benefits and shortfalls of each language and applies these traits to sample scenarios. Learners examine the history of each programming language, features shared between languages, and language semantics. Students also learn about non-essential programming languages and their applications in various situations. Before beginning comparative programming languages, students must learn languages like Java, JavaScript, and Python.

Another upper-division computer science course , this course examines the protocols, standards, and programming languages used to develop powerful web programming platforms. Students then learn to create content through various languages and interact with databases and XML documents. Because web programming relies heavily on practice over theory, students typically gain real-world experience in web programming.

At the undergraduate level, data mining and machine learning introduces the core concepts behind big data, algorithms, and the creation of actionable insights from data. Learners examine concepts like k-means clustering and clustering algorithms. Toward the end of the course, students use what they learned and apply the fundamental concepts to real-world examples using live algorithms to visualize data. Learners also use pseudocode to create their own programs.

Data mining and machine learning courses provide an excellent foundation for students interested in master's degrees. Taken after students complete an introductory Java concepts course, advanced Java concepts courses introduce topics like event handling, file input and output, and database connectivity. Students also learn about multi-threaded applications and programs, user events, and event handling.

While not always offered as an upper-division course, advanced Java concepts builds off previous associate degree concepts. Before enrolling in this course, students must understand the Windows operating system, graphical user interface design concepts, and Java programming fundamentals.

After completing a bachelor's degree in computer science, learners can pursue a master's or Ph. Individuals may complete both options, but many programs recommend that applicants select one or the other. Both master's and Ph. A master's in computer science requires roughly 45 credits to complete.

Full-time students can often graduate in 1. The specific subject matter of a master's in computer science depends on the specialization students choose. Most students complete master's degrees in computer science to advance their current careers, so individuals should select specializations that best suit their career goals.

Typically required as a foundational course and taken before specialization courses, analysis of algorithms introduces the design and analysis of algorithms. Students learn about various classical algorithms and their complexities. Students learn how to use intellectual tools to design, implement, analyze, and evaluate their own algorithms. By the end of the course, learners can explain basic algorithmic design and analysis concepts and processes. As a prerequisite course for many master's in data science programs, computability and formal languages takes place during an undergraduate degree or early on during a graduate degree.

The course covers the theoretical side of computational models and analysis, teaching students to identify the benefits and limitations of various models. Early on in the course, learners discover unsolvable problems in computational models, then apply theories to investigate the effectiveness of different models in these situations.

Later, students examine more complex theories, including pushdown automata, finite automata, and Turing machines. Offered as a required course for software specializations, compiler construction introduces the foundational techniques of compiling. Learners study topics like compiler construction tools, advanced theories, and the translation of programming languages into executables codes.

Toward the end of the course, students learn about more complex topics, including dynamic memory allocation, recurring, object orientation, and concurrency. Required in some intelligence specializations, artificial intelligence programming builds off of concepts covered in introductory machine learning courses. Students learn about knowledge-based interfaces and systems, particularly extensible systems and maintenance. Topics include frame, pattern matching, semantic networks, and deductive inference.

Most programs teach this course through hands-on projects, meaning students must complete several written programming assignments. By the end of the course, students can design and implement intelligent components for various industries through maintainable code.

Offered to students specializing in gaming, advanced computer game design teaches practices for programming computer games.