Individuals seeking careers in technology, specifically those who want to work with computers within one of the thousands of career options in this field, often find ambiguity when exploring computer science and computer engineering. This confusion sometimes creates hesitation within potential students, especially when program titles and curriculum vary so much from school to school; students know jobs within the field sometimes require a high degree of specialization, and so they want to ensure the program they choose is best for their individual career goals.
When potential students are trying to decide between computer science and computer engineering they should expect to find a great amount of overlap between the two fields. Knowing where the two programs coincide, and where they differ, will help students make a sound decision.
Similarities
Both computer science and computer engineering are deeply entrenched in the inner workings of computers and computer systems, and both programs focus on the hardware as well as software elements of computer systems. Students of both will study basic programming and fundamental computer operation and operating systems. Both computer engineers and computer scientists work daily with data and then process that data to obtain meaning from it; therefore, there is some commonality in the careers students of both programs pursue after graduation. These similarities confirm that both scientists and engineers can apply their skills to the same types of technological projects — it’s just that they work on varying aspects of those projects, side by side.
Both programs produce people who can use their sills to solve major problems, thus helping advance the field of technology as a whole.
Differences
The majority of the differences in the two areas of study lie in emphasis. Coursework for computer science typically includes intense math courses as well as programming and programming languages, algorithms, numerical analysis — the study of how a programmer can guarantee a number or series of numbers formed by a computer is accurate — and classes on computing theory and philosophy. Students of computer science programs graduate as computer scientists and mathematicians who have learned the skills necessary to process, translate, store, transfer and protect data.
Computer engineering is often considered combination of computer science and electrical engineering. Thus, classes in computer engineering have students focus on more practical elements, such as digital logic design and processor interfacing. These classes help students build a sturdy base knowledge of electronics, solid-state physics and devices programs; students of computer engineering programs come away with the ability to physically build computers. They are electrical engineers who concentrate heavily on software and/or hardware design, and sometimes computer systems that integrate both hardware and software.
Still Undecided?
When a student has exhausted his or her resources and still can’t decide between computer science and computer engineering, computer science will typically be the safer choice. It’s a more popular degree; the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics reported that more than 5,000 people earned computer science master’s degrees in 2009-2010 compared to about 1,500 computer engineering degrees the same year. The broader focus offered by computer science will undoubtedly lead to a wider range of career options, post-graduation. CTX offers a fully online bachelor’s in computer science — learn more today.