Feb 27, 2016 First off, let's try to define/distinguish between the 3 roles described: Software Engineer - Are hardcore computer programmers who live their lives writing lines of code, usually at a pretty low level (C/C programmers). They design and build. While “Software Developer” is only #4 in salary.com’s 8 hottest jobs of 2014 list in terms of growth rate (demand), it probably goes without saying that there are many well-paying career opportunities in Computer Science and IT (Information Technology) in general.
Average
Sep 24, 2019 Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS) - Salary - Get a free salary comparison based on job title, skills, experience and education. Accurate, reliable salary.
$172k
Computer Science vs. Computer Engineering Computer Science vs. Computer Engineering With salaries and workforce demand for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) graduates at an all-time high, two red-hot majors that prospective students must be familiar with are Computer Science and Computer Engineering.
Computer science vs. Engineering: Salary and job outlook The list of job titles shows the variety of careers available in the fields of computer science and engineering. Knowing what you’ll be doing day in and day out is important, but the practical side of you also needs to know more about the strength of these career fields.
Find out what you should be paid
Use our tool to get a personalized report on your market worth.
Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS)Average by Job
Average
$90,351
$118,789
$73,917
$103,641
$139,462
$122,837
$79,277
Currency: USD
Updated: Tue Sep 24 2019
Individuals Reporting: 2,518
View Table
Related Degrees by Salary
Degrees in the same industry as Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS), ranked by salary
Gender Breakdown
This data is based on 2,362 survey responses. Learn more aboutthe gender pay gap.
81.3%
$65k - $150k
18.7%
$60k - $138k
Job Satisfaction
Highly Satisfied
Based on 824 responses
Popular Schools for Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS) Degrees
Pay ranges for people with a Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS) degree by school.
Popular Companies for Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS) Degrees
Pay ranges for people with a Bachelor of Engineering (BEng / BE), Computer Science (CS) degree by employer.
Years of Experience
32.3%
30.3%
27.0%
6.0%
4.4%
by YK Sugi
Hey everyone! My name is YK, and I’m currently running CS Dojo, a programming education YouTube channel with 200,000+ subscribers. I was also formerly a software developer at Google.
Two of the most common questions my audience asks me are:
“What’s the difference between Computer Science and Software Engineering majors?”
And…
“Should I choose Computer Science or Software Engineering if I want to become a software engineer?”
In this article, I’ll answer this and give you my own quick analysis on these majors.
A quick overview of these two majors
Computer Science is the study of how computers work, mostly from the theoretical and mathematical perspective.
You should choose Computer Science if you like math, logic, or if you want to get into a specialized field in CS such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, security, or graphics.
Software Engineering is the study of how software systems are built, including topics such as project management, quality assurance, and software testing.
You should choose Software Engineering if you are more interested in the hands-on approach, and if you want to learn the overall life cycle of how software is built and maintained.
Both Computer Science and Software Engineering teach fundamentals of programming and computer science, so you can choose either one to become a software developer.
To understand the difference between Computer Science and Software Engineering majors, let’s take a look at their respective curriculum at University of Waterloo in Canada.
I chose University of Waterloo for this because it has one of the best computer science programs in North America.
Job prospects
Let’s first compare the kinds of jobs and internships you can get through each program.
Thankfully, University of Waterloo’s website provides several examples.
For each major, here are some of the titles alumni hold, and where they work:
As you can see, there isn’t a huge difference between the types of jobs you can get.
The most common job graduates get after earning their Computer Science or Software Engineering degree is Software Developer or Software Engineer.
There are other related options as well, such as Product Manager, QA Analyst, and Technology Consultant. Your options will depend on your specific skill set.
First-year courses:
Now, let’s take a look at each program’s required courses. Let’s first compare some of the courses you’d need to take in your first year.
Computer Science
CS 135 — Designing Functional Programs
CS 136 — Algorithm Design and Data Abstraction
MATH 135 — Algebra
MATH 136 — Linear Algebra 1
MATH 137 — Calculus 1
MATH 138 — Calculus 2
Plus a few electives
Software Engineering
CS 137 — Programming Principles
CS 138 — Data Abstraction and Implementation
MATH 115 — Linear Algebra for Engineering
MATH 117 — Calculus 1 for Engineering
MATH 119 — Calculus 2 for Engineering
MATH 135 — Algebra for Honours Mathematics
ECE 105 — Physics of Electrical Engineering 1
ECE 106 — Electricity and Magnetism
ECE 124 — Digital Circuits and Systems
ECE 140 — Linear Circuits
SE 101 — Methods of Software Engineering
As you can see, the first year courses are fairly similar as well. They both cover a few fundamental computer science courses, and a few math courses in linear algebra and calculus.
The only major difference is that Software Engineering has additional physics and electrical engineering components, while Computer Science has a few more electives.
Courses after the first year:
How about the required and elective courses after the first year? Let’s take a look at several examples here:
Computer Science:
MATH 239 Introduction to Combinatorics
STAT 230 Probability
STAT 231 Statistics
CS 240 Data Structures and Data Management
CS 241 Foundations of Sequential Programs
CS 245 Logic and Computation
CS 246 Object-Oriented Software Development <- not required in for Software Engineering majors
CS 251 Computer Organization and Design
CS 341 Algorithms
CS 350 Operating Systems
Plus, several Computer Science electives
Software Engineering:
CHE 102 Chemistry for Engineers
ECE 222 Digital Computers (includes assembly language)
ECE 358 Computer Networks
MATH 213 Advanced Mathematics for Software Engineers
MATH 239 Introduction to Combinatorics
STAT 206 Statistics for Software Engineering
MSCI 261 Engineering Economics: Financial Management for Engineers
CS 241 Foundations of Sequential Programs
CS 240 Data Structures and Data Management
CS 247 Software Engineering Principles <- not required for Computer Science majors
CS 341 Algorithms
CS 349 User Interfaces <- not required for Computer Science majors
CS 343 Concurrent and Parallel Programming <- not required for Computer Science majors
CS 348 Introduction to Database Management
SE 212 Logic and Computation
SE 350 Operating Systems
SE 465 Software Testing and Quality Assurance
SE 464 Software Design and Architectures
SE 463 Software Requirements Specification and Analysis
SE 490 Design Project
Plus, a few computer science and electrical engineering electives
I’ve given you a LOT of information to digest here. But here’s my summary:
Software Engineering Vs Computer Science
When it comes to the requirements in math and statistics, Computer Science and Software Engineering are almost identical. They cover combinatorics, probability and statistics.
The core computer science requirements are similar as well, ranging over algorithms, data structures, and operating systems.
The key difference are that:
Software Engineering has more requirements in electrical engineering and software engineering fundamentals, such as software testing, design, and software requirements specification.
Computer Science allows more electives in higher-level computer science courses. You can choose from a wide range of topics such as security, software engineering fundamentals, computer vision, machine learning, and database management.
So, which major should you choose?
I think it mostly depends on your preferences. In short:
You should choose Computer Science if you like math, logic, or if you want to get into a specialized field in CS such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, security or graphics.
You should choose Software Engineering if you’re more interested in the hands-on approach, and if you want to learn the overall life cycle of how software is built and maintained.
But wait — which is it then? Which major is better if you want to be a software engineer?
Here is my opinion. At this particular university (University of Waterloo), with this particular set of program requirements, Computer Science is a better major if you want to be a software engineer.
Just for simplicity, let’s suppose that you are hoping to get one the highest paying jobs (~$100,000 USD / year) as a software engineer in North America. These jobs are typically at large software companies (think Microsoft, Google, Amazon, etc.) or at medium-sized, high-growth companies (think Dropbox, Lyft, Snapchat, Pinterest, etc.).
Typically, what they look for in a software engineer candidate is the ability to write solid code and build interesting projects, as well as computer science fundamentals including data structures and algorithms.
I think the best way to cultivate this skill set is by quickly learning computer science fundamentals, and spending your own time practicing solving problems and writing code.
Based on the curriculum for Software Engineering and based on how busy engineering students tend to be in general, I think it would be harder to do this with Software Engineering than with Computer Science.
Another benefit of this particular Computer Science program is that it allows more computer science electives. This is great as well because depending on what’s in demand in the job market, you’ll be able to adjust your courses. For example, if mobile app development is in demand, you can learn that. And if parallel computing is in demand, you can focus on that instead.
I’m sure there are some benefits to learning software engineering fundamentals (project management, design, testing, etc.). But I would personally rather take flexibility over a predefined set of skills. That’s why I think Computer Science is a better major to become a software engineer with this particular curriculum.
Of course, that’s just my opinion, and this is just one particular university. I’d love to hear about your opinion and what your experience was like if you majored in either Computer Science or Software Engineering. Please let me know in a comment below.
A few notes
Note 1: Different universities have different requirements for these two majors. This article should be a good starting point, but you should still take a look at the program requirements at the university you’re interested in attending.
Computer Engineering Vs Software Enginee…
Note 2: Some universities don’t even have a Software Engineering major. For example, the University of British Columbia in Vancouver has Computer Science and Computer Engineering degrees, but not Software Engineering. But they do have a software engineering concentration within their Computer Science program, as well as in Computer Engineering.
If the university you’re interested in going to doesn’t have a Software Engineering major, I would go with Computer Science if you want to become a software developer. Computer Engineering is more focused on hardware than Computer Science or Software Engineering, so it’s less directly related to a typical software developer’s job.
Bizhub 554e Higher productivity begins at your bizhub color touchscreen: flick, drag, double-tap, pinch-in/pinch-out and perform control functions more quickly and intuitively. With multifunction printer and copier solutions as close as your screen, you’ll be able to speed your workflow — and standard dual scanning lets you capture both. Konica minolta 554.
Software Vs Computer Engineering
And here are the main sources I used:
Computer Science Versus Software Enginee…
Thanks for reading, and good luck choosing a university and your major! ?