Benefits of B. Apsc in Software Engineering vs. B. Sc in Computer Science

Question

After reading this question, it made me wonder about the benefits of pursuing a degree in Software Engineering as opposed to a degree in Computer Science (both being 4-5 year programs).

From what it sounds like, Software Engineering is a "shinier" degree because you have to go through the additional difficulty of learning hardware, circuits, mechanical, and electrical engineering before you can concentrate on the software aspect.

I'm starting my 3rd year of the Software Eng. program this January, and it looks like I still have to take several courses about signals and circuits. Being contrary to my career goal of being a programmer or web developer, would it be worth continuing, or should I settle for a Computer Science degree? I have no interest in computer hardware other than duct taping a graphics card to my motherboard.

When talking to Comp Sci students who are in the same year as I am, I always feel far less knowledgeable about topics such as algorithms, as those have barely been covered in my engineering program. So what are the tangible knowledge/skill benefits of the Software Eng. degree?

Answer 1

Software engineering curriculum is typically very different from what you describe. Good SE engineering curriculum as all about requirements gathering, tool selection, work planning, SW architecture, documentation, testing, the various processes that can help you accomplish each, and choosing appropriate metrics to measure your success in each and how to interpret those metrics. Each of those is a HUGE field on their own. There are numerous fields I didn't mention that many consider core parts of SE curriculum.

Point being, SE is NOT about hardware, circuits, etc. even if your university makes them part of the required courses.

If you want to make outstanding engineering decisions, take the work. You may find that your career leads to less programming and more paperwork telling programmers what to do. If you want to program, exclusively, then take the CS courses (even though traditional CS curriclum is more akin to computational mathematics than simply programming).