College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2021 Best Computer Science Colleges for Non-Traditional Students

170 Colleges
41,944 Bachelor's Degrees
$34,402 Avg Cost*

Finding the Best Computer Science Schools for Non-Traditional Students

Best Computer Science Colleges for Non-Traditional StudentsIn <nil>, 41,944 people earned their bachelor's in computer science, making the major the #16 most popular in the United States.

For this year's Best Computer Science Colleges for Non-Traditional Students ranking, we looked at 170 colleges that offer a bachelor's in compsci. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great computer science programs and a strong support system for non-traditional students.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the computer science program at the school, affordability, and non-traditional population. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Computer Science Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More CompSci Rankings Other Ranking Categories

The compsci school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best CompSci Schools for Non-Traditional Students.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.


 

2021 Best Computer Science Schools for Non-Traditional Students in the United States

Check out the compsci programs at these schools if you want to see which ones are the best for non-traditional students.

Top 25 Computer Science Schools for Non-Traditional Students

1

University of Southern California has taken the #1 spot in this year's computer science ranking for non-traditional students. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles. USC also took the #7 spot in our Best Colleges for Computer Science rankings.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.5%. There are approximately 15,291 students at USC that take at least one class online. 6,687 of USC students are attending part time.

Read More…

2

The #2 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Illinois Institute of Technology. Located in the large city of Chicago, Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Illinois Tech also did well on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

The student loan default rate at Illinois Tech is lower than is typical, just 0.8% of students default in three years. Approximately 1,752 students take at least one class online at Illinois Tech. 1,354 students are part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at Illinois Institute of Technology

3

Oregon State University landed the #3 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Located in the city of Corvallis, Oregon State is a public school with a very large student population. Oregon State also claimed a spot on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list. It's in the top 15% of all schools in this category.

About 0.7% of Oregon State students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. 10,888 of Oregon State students are exclusively distance learners. 10,920 of Oregon State students are attending part time.

Full Computer Science at Oregon State University Report

4

Cornell University landed the #4 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population. In addition to being on our bet for non-traditional students list, Cornell is in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

About 0.4% of Cornell students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 2,837 students take at least one class online at Cornell. 574 students are part time.

Read More…

5

The #5 spot in this year's ranking belongs to North Carolina State University. Located in the city of Raleigh, NC State is a public school with a fairly large student population. NC State excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 1.0%. There are approximately 14,604 students at NC State that take at least one class online. About 7,732 of the students at NC State are attending part time.

Read More…

6

University of Illinois at Chicago earned the #6 spot in our 2021 rankings. UIC is a very large public school located in the large city of Chicago. UIC also claimed a spot on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list. It's in the top 15% of all schools in this category.

About 0.7% of UIC students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 19,768 students at UIC that take at least one class online. 5,712 of UIC students are attending part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Illinois at Chicago

7

The #7 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Rochester Institute of Technology. Located in the large suburb of Rochester, RIT is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, RIT also is in the top 10% of our Best Colleges for Computer Science ranking.

The student loan default rate at RIT is lower than is typical, just 0.8% of students default in three years. There are approximately 9,961 students at RIT that take at least one class online. 1,867 students are part time.

Read More…

8

University of California - Berkeley comes in at #8 in this year's ranking. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, UC Berkeley also did well on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

The student loan default rate at UC Berkeley is lower than is typical, just 0.5% of students default in three years. Approximately 26,398 students take at least one class online at UC Berkeley. 4,099 of UC Berkeley students are attending part time.

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

9

Arizona State University - Tempe landed the #9 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Located in the midsize city of Tempe, ASU - Tempe is a public school with a fairly large student population. In addition to being on our bet for non-traditional students list, ASU - Tempe is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 1.5%. There are approximately 37,856 students at ASU - Tempe that take at least one class online. There are roughly 8,480 part time students in attendance at ASU - Tempe.

Read full report on Computer Science at Arizona State University - Tempe

10

University of Colorado Boulder earned the #10 spot in our 2021 rankings. CU - Boulder is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Boulder. CU - Boulder excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 1.1%. There are approximately 24,299 students at CU - Boulder that take at least one class online. About 7,631 of the students at CU - Boulder are attending part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Colorado Boulder

11

San Jose State University comes in at #11 in this year's ranking. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The student loan default rate at San Jose State is lower than is typical, just 0.9% of students default in three years. Approximately 19,939 students take at least one class online at San Jose State. 9,800 of San Jose State students are attending part time.

Full Computer Science at San Jose State University Report

12
Drexel crest
Drexel University
Philadelphia, PA

Our rankings recognize Drexel University as the #12 school in this year's rankings. Drexel is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia. Drexel also claimed a spot on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list. It's in the top 15% of all schools in this category.

The student loan default rate at Drexel is lower than is typical, just 0.9% of students default in three years. Approximately 6,249 students take at least one class online at Drexel. 5,829 of Drexel students are attending part time.

Read More…

13

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign earned the #13 spot in our 2021 rankings. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a very large student population. UIUC excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

About 0.6% of UIUC students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 35,475 students take at least one class online at UIUC. 10,007 students are part time.

Read More…

14

Washington State University landed the #14 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Located in the distant town of Pullman, Wazzu is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 1.4% of Wazzu students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. 4,690 of Wazzu students are exclusively distance learners. About 4,985 of the students at Wazzu are attending part time.

Full Computer Science at Washington State University Report

15

Our rankings recognize Wentworth Institute of Technology as the #15 school in this year's rankings. WIT is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Boston.

About 0.9% of WIT students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 737 students take at least one class online at WIT. There are roughly 384 part time students in attendance at WIT.

Read More…

16

The #16 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Binghamton University. Binghamton University is a large public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Vestal. Binghamton University excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

The student loan default rate at Binghamton University is lower than is typical, just 0.7% of students default in three years. There are approximately 1,472 students at Binghamton University that take at least one class online. About 1,855 of the students at Binghamton University are attending part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at Binghamton University

17

University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #17 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a fairly large student population. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UCSB also is in the top 10% of our Best Colleges for Computer Science ranking.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.5%. Approximately 3,596 students take at least one class online at UCSB. There are roughly 880 part time students in attendance at UCSB.

Read More…

18

University of Georgia landed the #18 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. UGA is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Athens. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UGA also is in the top 15% of our Best Colleges for Computer Science ranking.

The student loan default rate at UGA is lower than is typical, just 0.8% of students default in three years. There are approximately 6,742 students at UGA that take at least one class online. About 4,437 of the students at UGA are attending part time.

Full Computer Science at University of Georgia Report

19

California State University - Fullerton landed the #19 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Located in the suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 0.8% of Cal State Fullerton students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 25,781 students take at least one class online at Cal State Fullerton. 10,634 of Cal State Fullerton students are attending part time.

Full Computer Science at California State University - Fullerton Report

20

Portland State University landed the #20 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Portland State University is a fairly large public school located in the city of Portland.

About 1.5% of Portland State University students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 7,103 students at Portland State University that take at least one class online. 8,440 of Portland State University students are attending part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at Portland State University

21
Towson crest
Towson University
Towson, MD

Towson University comes in at #21 in this year's ranking. Towson is a fairly large public school located in the city of Towson.

About 1.7% of Towson students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 6,258 students take at least one class online at Towson. 4,337 of Towson students are attending part time.

Full Computer Science at Towson University Report

22

The #22 spot in this year's ranking belongs to California State University - Sacramento. Sac State is a very large public school located in the city of Sacramento.

About 1.7% of Sac State students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 16,876 students take at least one class online at Sac State. 7,378 students are part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at California State University - Sacramento

23

The #23 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Iowa State University. Located in the small city of Ames, Iowa State is a public school with a fairly large student population. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Iowa State also is in the top 20% of our Best Colleges for Computer Science ranking.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.7%. There are approximately 14,911 students at Iowa State that take at least one class online. 3,155 of Iowa State students are attending part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at Iowa State University

24

University of Maryland - Baltimore County landed the #24 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. UMBC is a large public school located in the suburb of Baltimore. In addition to being on our bet for non-traditional students list, UMBC is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

The student loan default rate at UMBC is lower than is typical, just 1.1% of students default in three years. There are approximately 8,618 students at UMBC that take at least one class online. About 2,955 of the students at UMBC are attending part time.

Read full report on Computer Science at University of Maryland - Baltimore County

25

Columbia University in the City of New York landed the #25 spot in our 2021 best computer science schools for non-traditional students. Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York. Columbia excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Computer Science list.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.9%. There are approximately 6,172 students at Columbia that take at least one class online. About 4,854 of the students at Columbia are attending part time.

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

Rest of the Top Schools for Best Computer Science Colleges for Non-Traditional Students


 

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Computer Science Colleges for Non-Traditional Students award.

Rank College Location
26 Regis University Denver, CO
27 Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX
28 California State Polytechnic University - Pomona Pomona, CA
29 California State University - Northridge Northridge, CA
30 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
31 University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA
32 University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Colorado Springs, CO
33 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
34 University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN

Computer Science by Region

View the best for non-traditional students Computer Science schools in a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

One of 10 majors within the Computer & Information Sciences area of study, Computer Science has other similar majors worth exploring.

Notes and References

Footnotes

*Avg Cost is for the top 25 schools only.

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options