What can you do with a bachelor's in Computer Science?
The field of computer science has only grown since the old-school room-sized computers started making calculations. In today’s digital world, computer technology and the internet are showing up in everything from home security systems and classrooms to VR goggles and medical devices. And the expansion of digital technology isn’t slowing down.
In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 13 percent increase in computer and information technology occupations between 2020 and 2030.
This begs the question: What exactly are all these jobs? And if you’re considering a computer science major, what can you do with a bachelor’s degree in that field?
The short answer is a lot.
What You Learn in an Undergraduate Computer Science Program
HTML is just the beginning. As an undergraduate student in Regis University’s Bachelor of Science in Computer Science program, you’ll learn the programming languages and skills to build new computer technology and improve existing software and programs.
You’ll gain a grounding in software engineering, machine learning, and artificial intelligence -- all prerequisites in today’s technological landscape. You’ll also have the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of cybersecurity, a field in which the needle is always moving because cyberattackers are always adjusting their methods.
Along the way, you’ll consider the ethics involved in responsible computing — a hallmark of our Jesuit Catholic education. And you’ll earn your degree from a program accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET), an honor reserved for computer science programs of the highest caliber.
(Extra bonus: Regis is ranked #1 for the Highest Paid Computer Science Graduates in Colorado in 2021 by CollegeFactual.com.)
With your degree in hand and computer science skills sharpened, you’ll be more than ready to embark on your career in technology.
Jobs for Computer Science Graduates
Name an industry, and computer science graduates are working in it. From healthcare, education, and business to philanthropy, sports, and government, every organization has a need for computer science graduates. Websites and social media platforms are just a fraction of what they’re concerned with.
Computer science graduates work behind the scenes on finance investment apps, food service point-of-sale systems, logistics for companies like UPS. They perform data, systems, and network analysis. They write code to organize reams of data, test developing technology, and run experiments. They build tools for educators to use in classrooms and doctors to use in operating theaters.
Whether you want to create the next popular video game, develop a new digital art form, help chronically ill patients, make educators’ jobs easier, or use your technical skills to improve the world in some other way, a degree in computer science can open doors for you to do exactly that.
Here are just a few of the jobs available to computer science graduates:
Developers
There are a variety of kinds of developers: web, app and software developers, backend, frontend, full stack developers. All of them are concerned with, well, developing technology that people will interact with. Developers use code to create websites, applications, and software programs.
- Backend developers are concerned with the underlying structure that makes these things run and connects, for example, data stored in one place to where it’s displayed in another place.
- Frontend developers are concerned with the part of the product that users interact with, i.e., the product interface. They’re concerned with both form (the visual aspect of the product) and function (how it works) and may either interact with UX designers or take care of UX needs themselves.
- •Full stack developers do all of the above. They’re well-versed in both backend and frontend development and can create an app or other virtual product from start to finish.
UX
Shorthand for user experience, UX pros are concerned with how people experience a product. They aim to make applications, physical tech gadgets, and of course, websites as easy and intuitive for users as possible. The goal is for users to never have to “figure out” the technology, but for it to function so naturally that using it is just as easy as opening a properly designed door.
There are a few different UX-related roles. UX researchers may need a higher level of education, while UX digital designer jobs may be open to folks with bachelor’s degrees with the right background and experience. UX professionals may start in more standard developer roles before focusing on UX for their careers.
AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a growing branch of technology that touches as many areas as tech itself. Jobs for computer science graduates in AI include:
- AI engineers, who build the actual AI technology from the ground up, taking standard computer engineering to the next level.
- AI product managers, who oversee the development of AI products from beginning to end and make sure that everyone involved in creating the product is keeping up with the timeline and communicating across departments. Technical knowhow and the ability to explain technological ideas to non-tech folks is crucial for this sort of job.
- AI data analysts, who build models to process data from the AI technology in order to measure the effectiveness of the technology and advise on needed improvements.
Many other computer science jobs overlap with AI.
Analysts
Computer science graduates develop skills that come in handy when a company or organization needs to process a lot of data and find out where their strengths and weaknesses are. Data analysts, business analysts, and other types of analysts need knowledge of coding, data structures and systems, as well as statistics, in order to do their jobs well.
Across the board, these analysts help organizations accurately interpret data for insights that guide decision making, determine research outcomes, and influence understanding of the organization’s effectiveness.
Cybersecurity
The more that our lives are connected to technology and the internet, the more our data and technological systems are at risk of cyberattack. This makes cybersecurity especially important. Cybersecurity analysts and engineers work together to protect technology and systems from cyberattacks — and to patch vulnerabilities and clean up the mess after a security breach
- Cybersecurity analysts, aka information security analysts, take hard looks at existing systems to identify potential holes in data networks and programs so they can be fixed before a bad actor finds them. They also work post-attack to identify where the breach occurred.
- Engineers build security into new and existing systems. They also address the vulnerabilities identified after a breach.
QA
Quality assurance is not optional for companies that create software for customers. QA engineers (or test engineers) and QA analysts ensure that products work the way they’re supposed to. They may write code that runs hundreds of tests at once or they may work manually, following paths a user might take to identify bugs. The goal is to make sure the existing code is solid and the vision of the development team is realized for users.
That’s just a few of jobs available to computer science graduates. As the field continues to grow, more specialties and opportunities are popping up across industries for individuals with the technological skills to build new systems and programs and make sure users can navigate products without a hitch.
Ready to take the first step toward your technology career? Learn more about earning a bachelor’s in computer science at Regis.
