Computer Engineering

Computer engineering programmes teach the boundary between hardware and software — digital logic, processor architecture, embedded systems, and the code that runs close to the metal. It sits deliberately between electrical engineering and computer science, and takes most of its first two years from the electrical side.

The degrees this program covers

A Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering, with master’s and doctoral degrees above it, awarded by ten Florida public institutions — the same footprint as electrical engineering. ⚠ The first two years usually match the electrical engineering degree almost exactly, so switching between them is cheap in year one and expensive in year three. ⚠ Accreditation matters and the commission depends on the degree: computer ENGINEERING is normally accredited by ABET’s engineering commission, computer SCIENCE by its computing commission. If a PE licence is a possibility, check which one your programme holds before enrolling.

Careers this program leads to

Each one sets out the courses along the way, the licence or certification at the end, and the sources behind it.

Computer Hardware Engineer

Computer hardware engineers design and test the physical machine — processors, boards, memory systems, embedded controllers and the peripherals around them. ⚠ It pays better than any other career on this site and it is small: about 76,800 people nationally, and a third of the occupation expects a master's degree.

Software Developer

Software developers design, build and maintain the systems everything else runs on. ⚠ A median of $135,980 nationally and $130,980 in Florida, on a bachelor's degree, and among the highest-paid on this site — above every two-year route and behind only computer hardware engineering. ⚠⚠ It is a CHOICE path: no single major owns it. Counted degrees show computing majors supplying under a third of working developers and ENGINEERING supplying nearly as many. ⚠⚠⚠ And it is the only career here you can enter with no degree at all — about one developer in five has none.

Programs similar to this one

Neighbouring fields that share much of the same coursework, and often the same employers. ⚠ Read these before you commit to a major — which doors a neighbouring degree keeps open is the part no catalog tells you, and it is far cheaper to change now than later.

Electrical Engineering 10 Florida schools

The nearer of its two neighbours, and usually the same department. The first two years overlap heavily, so if you are unsure which you want, start where your institution advises and decide by the end of year two — not later.

Computer Science 16 Florida schools

The software side of the same boundary. ⚠ The difference that matters for jobs: computer engineering owns the hardware, the embedded system and the device; computer science owns the algorithm, the application and the data. Firms hire from both for firmware and systems work.

Florida public institutions offering this program

10 institutions awarded a credential in this field in 2023, at these levels: Associate, Bachelor's, Doctorate (research/scholarship), Master's, Postbaccalaureate certificate. A school appears here if it awards anything in the field, however limited its offering — a technical college teaching only practical nursing has a nursing program. Listed alphabetically, not ranked.

Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University

Bachelor's

Florida Atlantic University

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's

Florida Gulf Coast University

Bachelor's

Florida International University

Bachelor's · Master's

Florida Polytechnic University

Associate · Bachelor's

Florida State University

Bachelor's

University of Central Florida

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's

University of Florida

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's · Postbaccalaureate certificate

University of South Florida

Bachelor's · Doctorate (research/scholarship) · Master's

University of West Florida

Bachelor's

Source: federal IPEDS completions data for 2023, first majors only — the most recent year published. ⚠ It records what was awarded, which is strong evidence of what is offered, but a program launched since 2023 will not appear here. Check the institution’s own catalog before applying.

Updated 21 September 2026. ⚠ Program pages describe a field of study, not one school’s degree — always read the catalog of the institution you are applying to.