Best Colleges for Computer & Information Sciences
50 Computer & Information Sciences programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion — from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.
For Computer & Information Sciences, Johns Hopkins University (Maryland) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $196,467. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion — not reputation or cost — across 50 programs with published outcome data.
| # | School | Credential | Median earnings | Median debt | Completers | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baltimore, MD | Bachelor's Degree | $196,467 | $12,750 | 151 | 96.3 |
| 2 | Philadelphia, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $241,380 | $15,000 | 172 | 95.7 |
| 3 | Houston, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $182,443 | $12,373 | 121 | 95.4 |
| 4 | New Haven, CT | Bachelor's Degree | $188,157 | $15,000 | 121 | 94.3 |
| 5 | Wellesley, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $177,213 | $13,350 | 57 | 93.3 |
| 6 | Ann Arbor, MI | Bachelor's Degree | $172,904 | $19,475 | 1,070 | 92.9 |
| 7 | Ithaca, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $144,389 | $15,500 | 220 | 92.3 |
| 8 | Atlanta, GA | Master's Degree | $195,622 | $20,500 | 2,416 | 92 |
| 9 | Charlottesville, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $142,041 | $16,547 | 230 | 91.6 |
| 10 | Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $216,722 | $15,156 | — | 91.5 |
| 11 | Gainesville, FL | Bachelor's Degree | $126,268 | $15,000 | 338 | 90.7 |
| 12 | New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $142,495 | $19,500 | 604 | 89.9 |
| 13 | Atlanta, GA | Bachelor's Degree | $150,628 | $20,500 | 847 | 89.7 |
| 14 | Austin, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $155,168 | $20,500 | 456 | 89.7 |
| 15 | Notre Dame, IN | Bachelor's Degree | $142,970 | $19,000 | 140 | 89.5 |
| 16 | Champaign, IL | Bachelor's Degree | $146,946 | $19,199 | 100 | 89.4 |
| 17 | Blacksburg, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $144,103 | $20,500 | 366 | 88.6 |
| 18 | Stony Brook, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $147,064 | $16,250 | — | 88.5 |
| 19 | Davis, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $138,673 | $14,000 | — | 88.2 |
| 20 | Madison, WI | Master's Degree | $196,985 | — | 100 | 87.6 |
| 21 | Gainesville, FL | Bachelor's Degree | $126,268 | $15,000 | 50 | 87.6 |
| 22 | Boston, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $163,708 | $22,583 | 483 | 87.4 |
| 23 | Pittsburgh, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $187,437 | — | 100 | 86.9 |
| 24 | Seattle, WA | Bachelor's Degree | $114,798 | $15,127 | 565 | 86.7 |
| 25 | Cambridge, MA | Master's Degree | $189,806 | — | 70 | 86.3 |
| 26 | Tacoma, WA | Bachelor's Degree | $114,798 | $15,127 | 276 | 86.3 |
| 27 | New Brunswick, NJ | Bachelor's Degree | $125,303 | $20,904 | 613 | 85.9 |
| 28 | Poughkeepsie, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $124,469 | $17,037 | 41 | 85.5 |
| 29 | Los Angeles, CA | Master's Degree | $287,429 | — | — | 85 |
| 30 | Richardson, TX | Master's Degree | $130,924 | $22,374 | 303 | 84.9 |
| 31 | Madison, WI | Bachelor's Degree | $119,655 | $20,500 | 733 | 84.6 |
| 32 | Salt Lake City, UT | Bachelor's Degree | $108,836 | $16,625 | 659 | 84.5 |
| 33 | San Luis Obispo, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $192,621 | — | — | 84.2 |
| 34 | Hoboken, NJ | Master's Degree | $148,614 | — | 69 | 84.2 |
| 35 | La Jolla, CA | Master's Degree | $201,287 | — | 26 | 84 |
| 36 | Stony Brook, NY | Master's Degree | $184,407 | — | — | 83.9 |
| 37 | Baltimore, MD | Master's Degree | $176,945 | $26,126 | 296 | 83.8 |
| 38 | Swarthmore, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $150,942 | — | 54 | 83.8 |
| 39 | Newark, NJ | Bachelor's Degree | $125,303 | $20,904 | 88 | 83.7 |
| 40 | Logan, UT | Bachelor's Degree | $110,414 | $16,500 | 127 | 83.7 |
| 41 | Richmond, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $118,521 | $19,933 | 118 | 83.6 |
| 42 | Boston, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $163,708 | $22,583 | 41 | 83.5 |
| 43 | Provo, UT | Bachelor's Degree | $113,338 | $13,500 | 43 | 83.4 |
| 44 | Bothell, WA | Bachelor's Degree | $114,798 | $15,127 | 49 | 83.3 |
| 45 | Lubbock, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $113,062 | $19,500 | 252 | 82.9 |
| 46 | Bellingham, WA | Bachelor's Degree | $110,138 | $18,583 | 151 | 82.9 |
| 47 | Oakland, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $163,708 | $22,583 | — | 82.7 |
| 48 | Storrs, CT | Bachelor's Degree | $117,412 | $19,500 | 74 | 82.6 |
| 49 | Chicago, IL | Master's Degree | $129,201 | — | 83 | 82.3 |
| 50 | Camden, NJ | Bachelor's Degree | $125,303 | $20,904 | 47 | 82.2 |
Hidden Gems for Computer & Information Sciences
Lower-profile schools with a genuinely strong outcome score for Computer & Information Sciences — the famous brand names and mega-flagships are deliberately filtered out.
| # | School | Median earnings | Admit rate | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tacoma, WA Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $114,798 | 83% | 86.3 |
| 2 | Newark, NJ Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $125,303 | 71% | 83.7 |
| 3 | Boston, MA Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, smaller, lower-profile campus | $163,708 | — | 83.5 |
| 4 | Bothell, WA Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $114,798 | 91% | 83.3 |
| 5 | Camden, NJ Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $125,303 | 66% | 82.2 |
| 6 | Madison, SD Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $137,285 | 88% | 81.6 |
| 7 | Arlington, VA Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $133,718 | 93% | 80.7 |
| 8 | Denver, CO Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $112,754 | 75% | 80.1 |
| 9 | Milwaukee, WI Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $130,564 | 81% | 79.6 |
| 10 | Tacoma, WA Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $128,703 | 78% | 78.5 |
| 11 | Eau Claire, WI Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $106,724 | 82% | 78.5 |
| 12 | Saint Louis, MO Strong Computer & Information Sciences outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $137,327 | 75% | 78 |
Hidden Gems use the same College Scorecard outcome score, then drop the pool’s most-selective brands (bottom-quartile admit rate) and largest campuses (top-quartile enrollment). Schools that don’t report admit rate or enrollment are not dropped by that guard.
How we ranked this
Programs are scored 0–100 within the Computer & Information Sciences field (CIP 11.01) using three College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (weighted 70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, inverted so lower debt scores higher), and completer count (10%, log-scaled). Each input is percentile-ranked against the other Computer & Information Sciences programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded — never given a fabricated number. This is the same engine that powers our interactive Major Rankings. Minimum 5 scorable programs required to publish.
Frequently asked questions
Which college has the best Computer & Information Sciences program?+
By our outcome score, Johns Hopkins University (Maryland) ranks #1 for Computer & Information Sciences, with median graduate earnings of $196,467.
How are these Computer & Information Sciences programs ranked?+
Each program gets a 0–100 outcome score from three real College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, lower is better), and completer count (10%). Programs are compared within the major so the score reflects the best schools for this field specifically.
Where does the earnings and debt data come from?+
The U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field-of-Study file, which publishes median earnings and median debt by institution and major (4-digit CIP). Figures are post-graduation medians; programs without published earnings are not scored and are omitted from this ranking.
Can I filter Computer & Information Sciences programs by state or degree level?+
Yes. This page shows the national top programs; use the interactive Major Rankings tool to filter the same data by state, and by credential level (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) · IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. CertiHomes Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.