Computing degrees have different specialties because computing involves distinct kinds of problems: understanding computation, designing hardware, building software, operating technology, using information systems in organizations, securing systems, and analyzing data. Degree titles offer a broad clue to that emphasis, not a guaranteed syllabus. To choose between programs, compare their required courses, applied work, and outcomes.
Why are there so many computing specialties?
Computing combines foundational ideas with practical work. Studying algorithms or the foundations of AI addresses different questions from designing a processor-based device, maintaining an organization’s network, or fitting a data system to a business process. Software work also ranges from small programs to complex systems that need careful requirements, testing, security, and long-term maintenance.
Specialties let programs develop depth around different problems while sharing a computing foundation. Their boundaries overlap: security, for example, is relevant across computing fields. The Association for Computing Machinery’s CCECC describes the fields as distinct but connected areas of study, while ABET’s criteria identify topic emphases rather than prescribing exact courses. ACM CCECC; ABET computing criteria, 2026–2027.
How the main computing degrees differ
These are broad curricular profiles, not universal definitions. A university may use the same degree name as another institution but require a different mix of courses.
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| Specialty | Center of study | Useful shorthand |
|---|---|---|
| Computer science (CS) | Computing foundations, algorithms, programming techniques, and applications such as operating systems and AI. | How computation works and how to develop computational solutions. |
| Computer engineering (CE) | Design and construction of processor-based systems that combine hardware, software, and communications. | How computing devices and integrated systems are designed. |
| Information technology (IT) | Design, implementation, and maintenance of technology solutions and user support, including networks, security, platforms, web and mobile systems, and technology lifecycle management. | How organizations deploy and operate technology. |
| Information systems (IS) | Applying computing to organizational processes and goals, bridging technical and management concerns. | How organizations use systems and data to do their work. |
| Software engineering (SE) | Requirements, design, construction, testing, and lifecycle management for large or complex software systems. | How to build and maintain reliable software at scale. |
| Cybersecurity | Security across technology, people, information, processes, risk, law, policy, ethics, and human factors. | How systems and operations withstand threats. |
| Data science | Combining domain data, computer science, and statistical tools to extract useful information. | How to analyze data for decisions or applications. |
ABET’s accreditation criteria provide another way to see the distinction. Its IT criteria include information management, networking, software development and management, systems, user experience, and web and mobile systems. Its IS criteria include application development, programming, data management, IT infrastructure, systems analysis and design, project management, and organizational context. The criteria identify topics; they do not require every school to package them into the same courses. ABET computing criteria, 2026–2027.
What separates the most commonly confused degrees?
Computer science and information technology
CS centers on computational foundations, algorithms, and programming. IT centers on implementing, configuring, planning, and maintaining technology solutions and infrastructure. Both may include programming, networking, operating systems, or security, but the required depth and balance can differ by program.
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Information systems and information technology
IS puts greater emphasis on how technology and data support organizational processes and goals. IT focuses more on deploying and operating the technology itself, including infrastructure and user support. Their curricula can overlap in areas such as systems, databases, and project work.
Computer engineering and software engineering
CE focuses on hardware/software systems, including processor-based devices and communications; engineering programs may require substantial mathematics, science, and engineering coursework. SE focuses on the process of building and maintaining complex software, including requirements, design, construction, security, verification, and validation. ABET’s engineering criteria describe preparation for complex hardware/software systems and are separate from its computing-program criteria. ABET engineering criteria, 2025–2026.
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Use the current catalog and program plan for the particular school and year—not just the department name or degree title.
- Compare required courses. Check how much of the curriculum is devoted to algorithms and theory, programming, databases, networking, operating systems, hardware or electronics, security, statistics, and organizational or management topics. Separate required courses from electives.
- Check mathematics and science. Look for discrete mathematics, calculus, probability and statistics, physics, and other science requirements. Engineering and computing accreditation criteria are distinct, so do not assume a program’s expectations from a similar-sounding title. ABET computing criteria, 2026–2027; ABET engineering criteria, 2025–2026.
- Look at applied work. Compare labs, internships, capstones, software projects, system-administration work, and hardware design. Accreditation criteria include experiential learning or project expectations for relevant categories, but institutions implement them differently. ABET computing criteria, 2026–2027.
- Verify program-specific accreditation. If accreditation matters to your plans, identify the exact program, degree level, and applicable ABET commission. ABET lists computing and engineering accreditation separately and treats degree levels differently across commissions. Confirm the program’s current status in ABET’s program search; accreditation cannot be inferred from a department or degree name.
- Plan transfers course by course. If you are starting at an associate program, ask for a written transfer plan and confirm how each course applies with the receiving institution. ACM CCECC recommends compatible transfer planning and completing coherent course sequences at well-defined points, but that guidance does not guarantee another school will accept credits. ACM CCECC.
- Match the curriculum to the work you want to explore. Consider whether you are more drawn to software construction, infrastructure, organizational systems, hardware, security, or data analysis. These are starting points, not sealed career tracks; many computing jobs cross specialty boundaries.
What a degree title can—and cannot—tell you
A title signals a program’s intended emphasis, but it cannot establish the exact course mix, the strength of a particular school’s instruction, or the preparation of every graduate. Catalogs and program plans provide the detail; where accreditation matters, check the individual program’s status rather than relying on its label.
These curricular distinctions do not establish that one specialty is universally better, more employable, or higher-paying than another. Such comparisons require current evidence scoped to the relevant location, degree level, and outcomes; the curricula alone do not rank them.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Sources and edition dates
The ACM CCECC offers broad descriptions of computing disciplines. The ABET computing-program criteria linked above are for 2026–2027; the engineering criteria are for 2025–2026. ABET criteria apply to programs seeking or holding its accreditation, not to every degree worldwide. Degree names and curricula are not globally uniform, and catalogs, transfer arrangements, and accreditation status can change.
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The CS2023 curricular report landing page states that the report was endorsed by ACM on January 18, 2024, IEEE-CS on January 22, 2024, and AAAI on February 22, 2024. CS2023 report.
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