What is better to major in Computer Science or Software Engineering?

[struntz]

Hello, if you would like to become a software devloper, what would be smarter? to major in Computer Science or to major in Software Engineering. I am currently looking at RIT, but they offer Computer Science and Software Engineering as a major. I always see job posts that say "4 years in Computer Science" or higher, but never "4 years in Software Engineering" What would a company rather have? because it looked like the CS offered alot more then the SE.

Thanks for listening


www.RIT.edu

[SteveCRM]

I've looked around a lot...but have never found a solid answer. What exactly is the difference...

This is what I've come up with
==========================
Computer Science Consists of these:
AI
Software Dev.
Software Engineering (? )

Computer Engineering (?)

[struntz]

It seems to be that CS teaches u so much but so not in deph, just scraching the service of every little aspect of Computers well almost every aspect...

[HarryW]

My degree esn't either of them but it's closer to computer science. I do Computing & Information Technology, which is basically Computer Science with a bit of business. Generally a more vocational point of view, supposedly.

AFAIK, SE is about the software development lifecycle, getting decent requirement specs, developing software, evaluating and improving software, testing, and that kind of stuff. Probably also implementing the product into an industrial environment. CS is more about the way computers work, information modellinh, AI, knowledge representation, data structures, the internet & networking, operating systems, etc.

I'd rather to CS personally. I hate testing.

[struntz]

but when loooking at a companies requirments and it says, at least 4 years of Computer Science required...for software devloping co's for software eingeers, do they want people that majored in software eingeering or cs?
and what would pay more, i mean if a Co looks at 2 resumes, and they see one with 4 years of software Eingeering and 4 years of CS, which has the advantage?

thanks for listening

[Kzin]

The answer partly depends on what you want to achieve. I've noticed that many of the CTOs who I meet in high tech software based firms often don't have software backgrounds at all - (The last two I can think of were former Post-Docs in Theoretical Quantum Physics and Astrophysics).

[CyberSurfer]

My uncle lectures in Computer Science at UKC, and is also responsible for work placements. From his experience, employers prefer to take on Computer Science graduates, because this ensures a good general knowledge of computer science. You could always specialise in Software Development as one of your options anyway...