Not only are the world’s biggest tech companies such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Apple headquartered in the US, it’s also home to some of the best universities in the world for computer science degrees.
Many computing courses in the US focus on developing the practical skills and real-world experience that students need to enter the technology industry.
There are 126 US universities in the THE Computer Science Rankings 20223. These are spread across the country from California to New York and include a number of specialist technology colleges.
Below are the best universities in US for computer science degrees.
Best universities for computer science degrees in the world Best universities in Australia for computer science degrees Best universities in the UK for computer science degrees Best universities in Canada for computer science degrees
5. Harvard University
Dating back to 1636, Harvard University is the oldest university in the US. It’s a member of the Ivy League and regarded as one of the most prestigious institutions in the world.
Courses at Harvard are designed to be flexible. Computer science students can combine their studies with other fields, including mathematics, physics, economics, psychology, and linguistics. The introduction to computer science class at Harvard is among the university’s most popular courses.
The computer science concentration covers topics ranging from cryptography to sensor motes. Students also have the opportunity to meet influential thought leaders in the field and use the latest tools and technologies, such as grid computing.
A range of clubs and societies fall under the computer science and technology umbrella, including the Harvard Undergraduate Robotics Club and Harvard Video Game Development Club.
Harvard alumni include Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft; and Mark Zuckerberg, who famously invented Facebook while still a student at the university.
4. University of California, Berkeley
The department of electrical engineering and computer sciences at the University of California, Berkeley was established in the late 1960s.
Undergraduates can study computer science as a major for a Bachelor of Arts degree; or by enrolling on the electrical engineering and computer sciences major, which leads to a Bachelor of Science degree; or by completing the courses required to get the minimum GPA and applying later to the major.
Because engineers and computer scientists often work in teams, all students on these courses are encouraged to take courses in communication.
Postgraduates can choose from research-oriented or industry-oriented programmes that will prepare them to continue with research-related work or to enter the job market.
Faculty and alumni from the department have founded nearly 900 companies. Former students include Steve Wozniak, who co-founded Apple alongside Steve Jobs.
3. Carnegie Mellon University
Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university established in 1900 by Scottish industrialist Andrew Carnegie.
Carnegie Mellon’s school of computer science offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in areas including neural computation, computational biology, language technologies and machine learning.
Undergraduates can undertake research projects in areas such as robotics and human-computer interaction. In the spring, students get to present the results of their work at the university-wide “Meeting of the Minds” celebration of undergraduate research.
There are also a wide range of master’s programmes, many of them being some of the first in the world to be offered. These include the master’s in automated science and master’s in computer vision.
The university conducts research in areas including brain science and driverless cars. It was also the first institution, via professor Scott Fahlman in 1982, to create a “smile” in an email.
What can you do with a computer science degree?
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology [MIT]
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology [MIT] is an independent, co-educational, private research university based in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Undergraduates are enrolled on a flexible curriculum, allowing them to focus on both theory and practical problems in computer science. Students can major in computer science or take computer science with another subject for a joint degree.
The undergraduate computer science programme includes compulsory units in programming, software construction and AI, as well as electives in areas such as database systems, language engineering and micro-computing.
There is no master’s degree in computer science at the university, but there is a doctoral programme.
Technological advances accredited to MIT include radar and the invention of magnetic core memory, which enabled the development of digital computers.
MIT computer science graduates have gone on to found some of the most influential tech companies. These include Robert Metcalfe, co-inventor of Ethernet; and Drew Houston, co-founder of Dropbox.
1. Stanford University
Stanford University’s computer science department was established in 1965 and offers a range of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees.
Stanford’s undergraduate computer science programme covers areas such as programming, AI, biocomputation, computer engineering and graphics. All students take the same six courses in the first year. In the latter half of their degree they can choose one area to focus on.
Postgraduates are able to “shop around” for a two-week period and try as many different classes as they like, then decide which courses they want to continue with. Computer science students can take courses in areas including software theory, theoretical computer science and computer and network security.
Given the institution’s focus on innovation, it is no surprise that Stanford graduates are famous for their entrepreneurship. Alumni include the founders of Google, Netflix, WhatsApp, Instagram and Palantir Technologies. In fact, companies founded by Stanford affiliates generate more than $2.7 trillion annual revenue, which would equate to the 10th largest economy in the world.
Top universities in the US for computer science degrees 2023
Click each institution to view its profile
US computer science rank 2023 WUR computer science rank 2023 University State 1 2 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts 2 3 Stanford University California 3 5 Carnegie Mellon University Pennsylvania 4 8 University of California, Berkeley California 5 9 Harvard University Massachusetts 6 =11 Princeton University New Jersey 7 15 University of Washington Washington 8 16 Cornell University New York 9 17 Georgia Institute of Technology Georgia 10 18 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Illinois 11 19 California Institute of Technology California 12 21 Columbia University New York 13 25 New York University New York 14 26 University of California, Los Angeles California 15 28 Johns Hopkins University Maryland 16 31 University of Texas at Austin Texas 17 32 Yale University Connecticut 18 33 University of California, San Diego California 19 35 University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 20 37 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Michigan 21 =38 The University of Chicago Illinois 22 45 University of Maryland, College Park Maryland 23 52 Duke University North Carolina 24 =53 University of Southern California California 25 60 University of California, Santa Barbara California 26 63 University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin 27 74 Brown University Rhode Island 28 76 University of California, Irvine California 29 80 Michigan State University Michigan 30 85 University of Massachusetts Massachusetts 31 =89 Penn State [Main campus] Pennsylvania =32 =91 University of California, Davis California =32 =91 Purdue University West Lafayette Indiana 34 94 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill North Carolina 35 =95 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia 36 98 Northwestern University Illinois =37 101–125 Boston University Massachusetts =37 101–125 University of Illinois at Chicago Illinois =37 101–125 Northeastern University Illinois =37 101–125 Rice University Texas =37 101–125 Rutgers University – New Brunswick New Jersey =42 126–150 Arizona State University [Tempe] Arizona =42 126–150 University of California, Riverside California =42 126–150 Stony Brook University New York =45 151–175 University of Rochester New York =45 151–175 Texas A&M University Texas =45 151–175 William & Mary Virginia =48 176–200 University of Colorado Boulder Colorado =48 176–200 University of Minnesota Minnesota =48 176–200 North Carolina State University North Carolina =48 176–200 Stevens Institute of Technology New Jersey =48 176–200 SUNY Binghamton University New York =53 201–250 University at Buffalo New York =53 201–250 University of California, Santa Cruz California =53 201–250 Case Western Reserve University Ohio =53 201–250 Dartmouth College New Hampshire =53 201–250 University of Florida Florida =53 201–250 Indiana University Indiana =53 201–250 University of Notre Dame Indiana =53 201–250 Ohio State University [Main campus] Ohio =53 201–250 Temple University Pennsylvania =53 201–250 The University of Texas at San Antonio Texas =53 201–250 Washington University in St Louis Missouri =64 251–300 University of Central Florida Florida =64 251–300 Florida International University Florida =64 251–300 George Washington University Washington DC =64 251–300 University of Iowa Iowa =64 251–300 Lehigh University Pennsylvania =64 251–300 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh campus Pennsylvania =64 251–300 University of Virginia [Main campus] Virginia =64 251–300 Washington State University Washington =72 301–400 University of Delaware Delaware =72 301–400 Florida Atlantic University Florida =72 301–400 Georgetown University Washington DC =72 301–400 University of Houston Texas =72 301–400 Illinois Institute of Technology Illinois =72 301–400 Iowa State University Iowa =72 301–400 University of Kentucky Kentucky =72 301–400 New Jersey Institute of Technology New Jersey =72 301–400 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute New York =72 301–400 University of Rhode Island Rhode Island =72 301–400 Syracuse University New York =72 301–400 University of Texas at Dallas Texas =72 301–400 Vanderbilt University Tennessee =85 401–500 Colorado School of Mines Colorado =85 401–500 Florida State University Florida =85 401–500 George Mason University Virginia =85 401–500 University of Georgia Georgia =85 401–500 Georgia State University Georgia =85 401–500 Louisiana State University Louisiana =85 401–500 University of Miami Florida =85 401–500 Missouri University of Science and Technology Missouri =85 401–500 Old Dominion University Virginia =85 401–500 SUNY University at Albany New York =85 401–500 University of Texas at Arlington Texas =85 401–500 University of Utah Utah =85 401–500 Wayne State University Michigan =85 401–500 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Massachusetts =99 501–600 University of Arizona Arizona =99 501–600 Clemson University South Carolina =99 501–600 University of Connecticut Connecticut =99 501–600 University of Dayton Ohio =99 501–600 Drexel University Pennsylvania =99 501–600 University of Maryland, Baltimore County Maryland =99 501–600 Mississippi State University Mississippi =99 501–600 University of North Carolina at Charlotte North Carolina =99 501–600 Oklahoma State University Oklahoma =99 501–600 University of South Florida Florida =99 501–600 Tufts University Massachusetts =99 501–600 Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia =111 601–800 The University of Alabama Alabama =111 601–800 University of Arkansas Arkansas =111 601–800 Colorado State University, Fort Collins Colorado =111 601–800 Georgia Southern University Georgia =111 601–800 University of Hawai’i at Mānoa Hawai'i =111 601–800 Kansas State University Kansas =111 601–800 University of Memphis Tennessee =111 601–800 University of Nevada, Las Vegas Nevada =111 601–800 New Mexico State University [Main campus] New Mexico =111 601–800 Oakland University Michigan =111 601–800 Rochester Institute of Technology New York =111 601–800 San Diego State University California =111 601–800 University of Texas at El Paso Texas =111 601–800 Texas State University Texas =111 601–800 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Wisconsin 126 801+ Portland State University Ohio
Which university has the best computer science program in USA?
Top Computer Science Schools in the US.
Is it worth to study computer science in USA?
Top reasons to study computer science in USA According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be 200,000 job vacancies for computer science graduates in 2021. Computer science specialists in the United States can expect a salary increase of 10% every 15 months.
Is USA best for computer science?
The US is home to some of the top universities offering Computer Science programs. US universities focus on imparting practical skills, so, students can develop programmes and software. Also, there are plenty of opportunities after completing your studies in the US.
What is the best university for computer science 2023?
The University of Oxford leads the table for the fifth consecutive year. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology [MIT] and Stanford University take the second and third places.