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2023 Best Computer Science Schools

433 Colleges
$67,538 Avg Salary
$23,620 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Computer Science School for You

Computer Science is the #12 most popular major in the country with 59,565 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Computer Science Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 433 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Computer Science Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for compsci majors pursuing a .

Top 25 Top Schools in Computer Science

Our 2023 rankings named California Institute of Technology the best school in the United States for computer science students. Located in the city of Pasadena, Caltech is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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#2

Harvey Mudd College

Claremont, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Harvey Mudd College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Computer Science Schools list. Located in the suburb of Claremont, Harvey Mudd College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

On average, compsci graduates from Harvey Mudd College take out $21,250 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#3

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Computer Science Schools list. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

CompSci majors at Stanford take out an average of $13,645 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Computer Science at Stanford University Report

#4

Brown University

Providence, RI

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Brown University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Computer Science Schools list. Located in the city of Providence, Brown is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

On average, compsci graduates from Brown take out $13,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Computer Science at Brown University

The excellent programs at Massachusetts Institute of Technology helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best computer science schools in the United States. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, MIT is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

The average amount in student loans that compsci majors at MIT take out is $10,538. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $682, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#6

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

Cornell University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best computer science programs. Cornell is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Ithaca.

After completing their degree, compsci graduates from Cornell carry an average student debtload of $15,003. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $524, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Computer Science at Cornell University Report

#7

Pomona College

Claremont, CA

Pomona College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best computer science programs. Pomona is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Claremont.

Full Computer Science at Pomona College Report

#8

Duke University

Durham, NC

Duke University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Computer Science Schools list. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Durham.

CompSci majors at Duke take out an average of $11,950 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $581.

Full Computer Science at Duke University Report

#9

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

Carnegie Mellon University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Schools ranking. Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

On average, compsci graduates from Carnegie Mellon take out $21,456 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University

#10

Williams College

Williamstown, MA

With a ranking of #10, Williams College did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students. Located in the town of Williamstown, Williams is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that compsci majors at Williams take out is $13,134.

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#11

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for computer science students. It came in at #11 on the list. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Philadelphia.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Pennsylvania

University of California - Berkeley ranked #12 on this year’s Best Computer Science Schools list. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the city of Berkeley.

After completing their degree, compsci graduates from UC Berkeley carry an average student debtload of $14,203. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $386.

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Bunker Hill Community College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Schools ranking. BHCC is a medium-sized public school located in the large city of Boston.

The average amount in student loans that compsci majors at BHCC take out is $7,452.

Read full report on Computer Science at Bunker Hill Community College

#14

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Harvard University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Computer Science Schools list. Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge.

Full Computer Science at Harvard University Report

#15

Dartmouth College

Hanover, NH

With a ranking of #15, Dartmouth College did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students. Dartmouth is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the town of Hanover.

On average, compsci graduates from Dartmouth take out $20,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Computer Science at Dartmouth College

#16

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best computer science programs. Vanderbilt is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Nashville.

On average, compsci graduates from Vanderbilt take out $19,563 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Computer Science at Vanderbilt University Report

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #17 on this year’s Best Computer Science Schools list. UIUC is a very large public school located in the small city of Champaign.

CompSci majors at UIUC take out an average of $18,500 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $477, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

With a ranking of #18, Florida Polytechnic University did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students. Florida Poly is a small public school located in the rural area of Lakeland.

Read full report on Computer Science at Florida Polytechnic University

Saint Martin’s University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for computer science students. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the city of Lacey, Saint Martin's is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

While working on their degree, compsci majors at Saint Martin's accumulate an average of around $15,622 in student debt.

Full Computer Science at Saint Martin’s University Report

#20

Amherst College

Amherst, MA

With a ranking of #20, Amherst College did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students. Located in the large suburb of Amherst, Amherst is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Computer Science at Amherst College Report

Lake Area Technical Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for computer science students. It came in at #21 on the list. Located in the remote town of Watertown, LATI is a public college with a small student population.

CompSci majors at LATI take out an average of $14,250 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Computer Science at Lake Area Technical Institute

University of Washington - Tacoma Campus came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Schools ranking. UW Tacoma is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Tacoma.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Washington - Tacoma Campus

#23

Colgate University

Hamilton, NY

Colgate University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for computer science students. It came in at #23 on the list. Colgate is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Hamilton.

After completing their degree, compsci graduates from Colgate carry an average student debtload of $17,500.

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University of Maryland - College Park landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best computer science programs. Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public college with a very large student population.

CompSci majors at UMCP take out an average of $21,500 in student loans while working on their egree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $307.

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University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Schools ranking. Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, compsci graduates from UW Seattle carry an average student debtload of $16,220. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $218.

Read More…

Rest of the Top Best Computer Science Schools

#27

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL
#28

Western Governors University

Salt Lake City, UT
#31

Tufts University

Medford, MA
#32

Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA
#33

Villanova University

Villanova, PA
#34

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL
#35

Carleton College

Northfield, MN
#39

Grinnell College

Grinnell, IA
#40

Georgetown University

Washington, DC
#43

Auburn University

Auburn, AL
#46

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN
#49

Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA
#50

University of Rochester

Rochester, NY

Additional Award Winners

This list represents the rest of the colleges awarded a Best Computer Science Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 433 different United States computer science schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 University of California - Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA
52 Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC
53 Bellevue College Bellevue, WA
54 Collin County Community College District McKinney, TX
55 Normandale Community College Bloomington, MN
56 Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO
57 Saint Johns University Collegeville, MN
58 DePauw University Greencastle, IN
59 George Washington University Washington, DC
60 Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX
61 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY
62 St Olaf College Northfield, MN
63 Emory University Atlanta, GA
64 University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point Stevens Point, WI

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Computer Science Schools award.

Rank College Location
65 Seattle University Seattle, WA
66 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA
67 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA
68 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH
69 North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC
70 Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI
71 University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
72 Gonzaga University Spokane, WA
73 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA
74 University of St Thomas Minnesota Saint Paul, MN
75 Saint Cloud State University Saint Cloud, MN
76 University of Georgia Athens, GA
77 Boston University Boston, MA
78 North Hennepin Community College Brooklyn Park, MN
79 Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN
80 Grantham University Lenexa, KS
81 Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ
82 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
83 Luther College Decorah, IA
84 University of Portland Portland, OR
85 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
86 Brandeis University Waltham, MA

Computer Science by Region

View the Best Computer Science Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 10 majors within the area of study, computer science has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Computer Information Systems 88,434
Information Technology 40,555
Information Science 18,325
Computer Systems Networking 14,700
Computer Software & Applications 14,336

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Negative Space.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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