by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Most Well Attended Programming Major” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 11,939 people earned their degree in computer programming, making the major the 108th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, computer programming graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $45,629 and had an average of $27,450 in loans still to pay off.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Programming Major” ranking analyzed 440 colleges that offered a degree in computer programming. To top this list, a school must have a successful computer programming program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Most Well Attended Programming Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for programming students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Western Governors University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. Located in Salt Lake City, Utah, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 633 diplomas to qualified ’s programming students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 440 schools in the Most Well Attended Programming Major that were part of this year’s ranking, DePaul University landed the #2 spot on the list. DePaul is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 286 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 440 schools in the Most Well Attended Programming Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Farmingdale State College landed the #3 spot on the list. Farmingdale State College is a medium-sized school located in Farmingdale, New York that handed out 158 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
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%.
Read full report on Computer Programming at Farmingdale State College
Out of the 440 schools in the Most Well Attended Programming Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Fort Hays State University landed the #4 spot on the list. Fort Hays State University is a public institution located in Hays, Kansas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 154 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out of the 440 schools in the Most Well Attended Programming Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Rowan University landed the #5 spot on the list. Rowan is a fairly large public school situated in Glassboro, New Jersey. It awarded 146 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.6% 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%.
Diablo Valley College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking. Diablo Valley is a fairly large school located in Pleasant Hill, California that handed out 248 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
San Jacinto Community College landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking. San Jacinto College is a large school located in Pasadena, Texas that handed out 103 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #8, ECPI University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. ECPI University is a fairly large private for-profit school situated in Virginia Beach, Virginia. It awarded 99 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
Columbus State Community College did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking, coming in at #9. Columbus State is located in Columbus, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 107 ’s programming degrees to qualified students.
With a ranking of #10, DigiPen Institute of Technology did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. Redmond, Washington is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s programming degrees to 88 students in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. 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%.
Orange Coast College landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking. Located in Costa Mesa, California, this fairly large public school handed out 205 diplomas to qualified ’s programming students in 2020-2021.
Bellevue University ranked #12 on this year’s Most Well Attended Programming Major list. This fairly large school is located in Bellevue, Nebraska, and it awarded 72 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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%.
Maryville University of Saint Louis ranked #12 on this year’s Most Well Attended Programming Major list. This fairly large school is located in Saint Louis, Missouri, and it awarded 72 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
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%.
With a ranking of #14, El Centro College did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. El Centro College is a large public school situated in Dallas, Texas. It awarded 114 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
ASA College landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking. Brooklyn, New York is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s programming degrees to 63 students in 2020-2021.
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking, coming in at #16. UC is a large public school situated in Cincinnati, Ohio. It awarded 60 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, 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 88%.
With a ranking of #16, University of Akron Main Campus did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. Akron, Ohio is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s programming degrees to 60 students in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Computer Programming at University of Akron Main Campus
University of Chicago ranked #18 on this year’s Most Well Attended Programming Major list. UChicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 57 ’s programming degrees to qualified students.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, 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 100%.
Portland Community College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking. This large school is located in Portland, Oregon, and it awarded 133 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Computer Programming at Portland Community College
University of Michigan - Dearborn came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking. UM Dearborn is located in Dearborn, Michigan and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 55 ’s programming degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #21, New England Institute of Technology did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. New England Institute of Technology is a small school located in East Greenwich, Rhode Island that handed out 50 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Computer Programming at New England Tech
Santa Fe College did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking, coming in at #21. Santa Fe College is a fairly large public school situated in Gainesville, Florida. It awarded 112 ’s programming degrees in 2020-2021.
Southwestern College ranked #21 on this year’s Most Well Attended Programming Major list. Winfield, Kansas is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s programming degrees to 50 students in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
With a ranking of #24, Kennesaw State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major list. Located in Kennesaw, Georgia, this large public school awarded 49 diplomas to qualified ’s programming students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Computer Programming at Kennesaw State University
Green River College ranked #25 on this year’s Most Well Attended Programming Major list. GRC is a public institution located in Auburn, Washington. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 89 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Computer Programming at Green River College
Fox Valley Technical College did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Programming Major ranking, coming in at #25. Located in Appleton, Wisconsin, this fairly large public school handed out 46 diplomas to qualified ’s programming students in 2020-2021.
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
While not in the ’top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 52 | Sierra College | Rocklin, CA |
| 52 | Chattahoochee Technical College | Marietta, GA |
| 52 | Cuyahoga Community College District | Cleveland, OH |
| 55 | Cincinnati State Technical and Community College | Cincinnati, OH |
| 55 | Des Moines Area Community College | Ankeny, IA |
| 55 | Essex County College | Newark, NJ |
| 58 | Community College of Rhode Island | Warwick, RI |
| 59 | Maharishi International University | Fairfield, IA |
| 59 | Sinclair Community College | Dayton, OH |
| 59 | Community College of Allegheny County | Pittsburgh, PA |
| 59 | LaGuardia Community College | Long Island City, NY |
| 63 | Bellevue College | Bellevue, WA |
| 63 | Missouri Southern State University | Joplin, MO |
| 65 | University of Advancing Technology | Tempe, AZ |
| 65 | Champlain College | Burlington, VT |
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 67 | St Cloud Technical and Community College | Saint Cloud, MN |
| 67 | Indian Hills Community College | Ottumwa, IA |
| 67 | Clover Park Technical College | Lakewood, WA |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies