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2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid

386 Ranked Colleges
59,565 Degrees Awarded
$12,200 Avg Net Price*
Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Computer Science is the 12th most popular major in the country with 59,565 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, computer science graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $67,538 and had an average of $23,620 in loans still to pay off.

This year’s “Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 386 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in computer science. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great computer science programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the computer science program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Computer Science Schools

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When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for compsci students with aid.

Top 25 Best Value Colleges for Computer Science (With Aid)

1

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. UW Seattle is a public institution located in Seattle, Washington. The school has a large population, and it awarded 470 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our compsci students with aid list, UW Seattle has also earned the #16 rank in our “Best Computer Science Schools” ranking. It costs about $12,017 for compsci students with aid per year to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Washington - Seattle Campus

2
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. Stanford University is a fairly large school located in Stanford, California that handed out 628 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

Stanford did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Stanford University is $12,894 for compsci students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full Stanford Computer Science Report

3

Out of the 386 schools in the Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill landed the #3 spot on the list. UNC Chapel Hill is a public institution located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The school has a large population, and it awarded 461 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

UNC Chapel Hill also made our “Best Computer Science Schools” list, coming in at #25. The estimated yearly cost for University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is $12,469 for compsci students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Computer Science at UNC Chapel Hill

4
BHCC crest
Bunker Hill Community College
Boston, Massachusetts

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bunker Hill Community College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, this medium-sized public school awarded 39 degrees to qualified ’s compsci students in 2020-2021.

On top of its placing in this ranking, BHCC also did well on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Bunker Hill Community College is $7,913 for CompSci students with aid.

Read more about Computer Science at BHCC

5
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Purdue University - Main Campus
West Lafayette, Indiana

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Purdue University - Main Campus. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid. Purdue is located in West Lafayette, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 572 ’s compsci degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Purdue, the school also landed the #22 spot in our “Best Computer Science Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Purdue is $13,377 for compsci students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Computer Science at Purdue University - Main Campus

6
MIT crest
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Massachusetts Institute of Technology landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 692 diplomas to qualified ’s compsci students in 2020-2021.

MIT did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for MIT is $16,407 for compsci students with aid.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 98%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on Computer Science at MIT

7

With a ranking of #7, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 901 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our compsci students with aid list, UIUC has also earned the #19 rank in our “Best Computer Science Schools” ranking. It costs about $14,321 for CompSci students with aid per year to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Computer Science at UIUC

8
Harvard crest
Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Harvard University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #8. Harvard is a large school located in Cambridge, Massachusetts that handed out 187 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our compsci students with aid list, Harvard has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Computer Science Schools” ranking. It costs about $13,872 for compsci students with aid per year to attend Harvard University.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full Harvard Computer Science Report

9
WGU crest
Western Governors University
Salt Lake City, Utah

Western Governors University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. WGU is a large school located in Salt Lake City, Utah that handed out 459 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend WGU is $9,969 for CompSci students with aid.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Computer Science at WGU

10

With a ranking of #10, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Berkeley, California, and it awarded 856 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our compsci students with aid list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Computer Science Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC Berkeley is $16,032 for compsci students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of California - Berkeley

11

University of California - San Diego ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. La Jolla, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s compsci degrees to 868 students in 2020-2021.

UCSD also made our “Best Computer Science Schools” list, coming in at #24. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - San Diego is $15,240 for CompSci students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Computer Science at University of California - San Diego

12
CCNY crest
The City College of New York
New York, New York

With a ranking of #12, The City College of New York did quite well on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. CCNY is a fairly large school located in New York, New York that handed out 135 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

It costs about $2,805 for compsci students with aid per year to attend CCNY.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full CCNY Computer Science Report

13
Hunter crest
Hunter College
New York, New York

Hunter College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #13. New York, New York is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s compsci degrees to 213 students in 2020-2021.

The estimated yearly cost for Hunter is $2,158 for CompSci students with aid.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Computer Science at Hunter

14

California State University - Los Angeles landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Cal State LA is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 182 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - Los Angeles is $3,302 for CompSci students with aid.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full California State University - Los Angeles Computer Science Report

15

University of California - Irvine did quite well in the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #15. University of California - Irvine is a public institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,007 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

On top of its placing in this ranking, UC Irvine also did well on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $12,209 for compsci students with aid per year to attend University of California - Irvine.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of California - Irvine

16

With a ranking of #16, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is a large public school situated in Edinburg, Texas. It awarded 146 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

It costs about $3,743 for compsci students with aid per year to attend The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Computer Science at UT Rio Grande Valley

17
QC crest
Queens College
Queens, New York

Queens College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #17. Queens College is located in Queens, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 334 ’s compsci degrees to qualified students.

The estimated yearly cost for Queens College is $3,469 for CompSci students with aid.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full QC Computer Science Report

18

Collin County Community College District ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in McKinney, Texas, and it awarded 44 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

It costs about $7,040 for compsci students with aid per year to attend Collin County Community College District.

Read more about Computer Science at Collin County Community College District

19

University of Maryland - College Park ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. University of Maryland - College Park is a public institution located in College Park, Maryland. The school has a large population, and it awarded 929 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

UMCP did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #18 on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Maryland - College Park is $18,048 for CompSci students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Maryland - College Park Computer Science Report

20
El Centro College crest
El Centro College
Dallas, Texas

El Centro College ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Dallas, Texas, and it awarded 33 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

The estimated yearly cost for El Centro College is $4,739 for CompSci students with aid.

Full El Centro College Computer Science Report

21

Northern Virginia Community College landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Northern Virginia Community College is a public institution located in Annandale, Virginia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 296 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

It costs about $9,452 for compsci students with aid per year to attend Northern Virginia Community College.

Full Northern Virginia Community College Computer Science Report

22
Williams crest
Williams College
Williamstown, Massachusetts

Williams College ranked #22 on this year’s Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid list. Williams is a small school located in Williamstown, Massachusetts that handed out 46 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

Williams also made our “Best Computer Science Schools” list, coming in at #23. The yearly cost to attend Williams is $23,497 for CompSci students with aid.

The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.

Read full report on Computer Science at Williams

23
IU Bloomington crest
Indiana University - Bloomington
Bloomington, Indiana

Indiana University - Bloomington landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. IU Bloomington is a public institution located in Bloomington, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 263 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

IU Bloomington also claimed a top spot on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. It costs about $14,619 for CompSci students with aid per year to attend Indiana University - Bloomington.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Computer Science at Indiana University - Bloomington

24
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, North Carolina

Duke University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Duke University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Durham, North Carolina. It awarded 404 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

Duke also made our “Best Computer Science Schools” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend Duke University is $32,459 for CompSci students with aid.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read more about Computer Science at Duke

25

Columbia University in the City of New York came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Columbia is a large private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 898 ’s compsci degrees in 2020-2021.

Columbia did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best Computer Science Schools” list. It costs about $22,823 for compsci students with aid per year to attend Columbia University in the City of New York.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on Computer Science at Columbia University in the City of New York

Rest of the Best 50 in Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid

Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

26
Lehman crest
Lehman College
Bronx, New York
27
28
29
29
NC State crest
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina
31
32
Ivy Tech Community College crest
Ivy Tech Community College
Indianapolis, Indiana
33
34
35
36
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South Texas College
McAllen, Texas
37
Amherst crest
Amherst College
Amherst, Massachusetts
38
UGA crest
University of Georgia
Athens, Georgia
39
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University of Missouri - St Louis
Saint Louis, Missouri
40
41
Brooklyn College crest
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn, New York
42
43
44
45
SUNY Stony Brook crest
Stony Brook University
Stony Brook, New York
46
47
Appalachian State crest
Appalachian State University
Boone, North Carolina
48
49
50

Rest of the Top 15% Colleges in Best Value CompSci Schools For Those Getting Aid

While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

Rank College Location
51 Bellevue College Bellevue, WA
52 Iowa State University Ames, IA
53 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
54 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
55 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
56 Central New Mexico Community College Albuquerque, NM
57 California State University - Dominguez Hills Carson, CA
58 Brown University Providence, RI

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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