General Computer Engineering

Types of Degrees General Computer Engineering Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many general computer engineering graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	3,298
Doctor’s Degree	362
Graduate Certificate	10

What General Computer Engineering Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to general computer engineering and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for General Computer Engineering Majors

General Computer Engineering majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Skills for General Computer Engineering Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to general computer engineering:

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Abilities for General Computer Engineering Majors

As you progress with your general computer engineering degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a General Computer Engineering Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with general computer engineering:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Architectural and Engineering Managers	5.5%	$140,760
Computer Hardware Engineers	5.4%	$114,600
Engineering Professors	14.7%	$101,720
Software Developers, Applications	30.7%	$103,620
Software Developers, Systems Software	11.1%	$110,000
Telecommunications Engineering Specialists	6.5%	$109,020

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in General Computer Engineering?

This major tends to be male dominated. About 76% of recent graduates are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of general computer engineering majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	238
Black or African American	57
Hispanic or Latino	100
White	480
International Students	2,339
Other Races/Ethnicities	84

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in General Computer Engineering, too. About 70.9% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to General Computer Engineering

Some careers associated with general computer engineering require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to general computer engineering have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	0.6%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	4.0%
Some College Courses	0.6%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	4.1%
Bachelor’s Degree	59.6%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	2.7%
Master’s Degree	18.9%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	1.6%
Doctoral Degree	6.1%
Post-Doctoral Training	1.6%

Online General Computer Engineering Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	1	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	14	1
Bachelor’s Degree	13	2
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	115	11
Post-Master’s	4	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	61	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to General Computer Engineering

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to general computer engineering.

Major	Number of Grads
Software Engineering	5,090
Other Computer Engineering	342
Computer Hardware Engineering	52

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.