Should I take computer science or software engineering?

Question

It seems to be all the colleges teach "computer science" but none of them really teach "software engineering". Now I want to do software engineering but I hear computer sciences has some elements of software engineering.. but tends to focus more on the theoreticaland mathematical aspects of computers and programming, while software engineering is just all about creating software and having a deeper understanding of the whole software development process. Which is what I want to do. Can some one please explain to me the diffference between Computer science and software engineering and if I should just take computer science or keep looking for a college that caters directly to just software engineering.

Answer 1

I would take computer science. Part of your degree will probably require you to take software engineering courses. Software Engineering is more focused on large project development. Working with teams of developers. It is and engineering discipline where you learn rules and procedures on how to develop software using a defined process. Computer Science is more focused on algorithms, coding, data structures and pure software. Computer Science degree will give you more flexibility and more options. I'd take Software Engineering courses as it is important to know because big companies work like that. A lot of companies follow different processes. So, they will train you on the job. Just get a class or two in software engineering and you'll know the basics.

Answer 2

Accredited schools generally offer a choice between computer science and computer engineering. Software engineering is generally not considered to be an undergrad major, but the Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon University offers professional certifications for people already in the field. This is not an academic degree but rather a professional certification.

The differences between computer engineering and computer science are fairly small in terms of the courses offered. In fact, the computer courses are shared between the two majors, and you can usually pick between the theoretical courses and practical ones when crafting your major. The main difference between computer engineering and computer science is in the degree requirements. CE requires the basic core engineering courses like statics and dynamics, and more math. CS is usually in the arts and sciences department, and requires a greater breadth of classes to graduate, like foreign language, history, etc, and fewer pure engineering courses. The differences between the two when getting a job are small, though if you plan on going to graduate school, the major you pick would make a difference.

My advice- learn the theoretical stuff in school while becoming comfortable with code. Software engineering is better learned in the real world, but you'll never get the opportunity to learn the theory behind everything once you graduate. When I graduated, I was initially critical of my program since I thought it was too theoretical but in hindsight that background in computing theory and algorithms has proven far more useful than any course in software engineering I could have taken without the benefit of real world experience.

Answer 3

Find a uni that does software engineering. It is much different and if u like that field, u should do what u like best. Anyways, im in Canada and all the universities here pretty much separate the two. I know waterloo, UT, UBC, Queens, UO, Carleton are just a few of the universities thato ffer it. Waterloo and UT have a very high reputation for their engineering programs so its not like ur going to some no name uni.

Answer 4

take software engineering because computer science it's a bunch of computer languages study with no focus on anything. with software engineering, the employer will know what they are getting into when they are looking at your resume. trust me, i took computer science.

Answer 5

Well, writing software involves knowing a lot of mathematical algorithms without which good efficient sofware cannot be. You're def better off knowing them than not.

Answer 6

Take software engineering. It is better as there is more demand for it and it pays well.