Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Software Engineers For Applications
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Richland College, Blinn, Northwest Vista College, and South Texas College.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Paul Quinn College, UTEP, Texas A&M, and UTPA.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Paul Quinn College, Texas Southern, South Texas College, and Texas College.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider University of Houston-Clear Lake, Lee College, University of Dallas, and Brookhaven.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of University of Dallas, SMU, LeTourneau, and Southwestern Adventist University.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Texas Lutheran University, Austin College, Huston - Tillotson, and Howard Payne.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at SMU, Austin College, University of Dallas, and UT Dallas.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Paul Quinn College, University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Dallas Baptist, and Huston - Tillotson.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Texas Southern, SMU, St Marys University, and Austin College.
Working as a Computer Applications Software Engineer in Texas
Computer applications software engineers analyze the needs of people who use computers and design software using programming languages. They collect client requirements, plan and design applications, and provide support and enhancements for software products. They also oversee the testing and implementation of these applications. They often create customized programs for their clients as well. Read a detailed Computer Applications Software Engineer job description and schools overview.
Computer applications software engineers in Texas can network and share knowledge through organizations like IEEE Computer Society - Austin Chapter or IEEE Computer Society - Dallas Chapter and the Association for Computing Machinery's Austin ACM SIGGRAPH Professional Chapter.
State Requirements
To work in the State of Texas, computer applications software engineers do not have to fulfill any specific state requirements in Texas.
Spotlight Schools Search
Spotlight Texas Schools Related to This Career
- Locations: Austin, Irving, Sugar Land
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
- Locations: Austin, Houston, San Antonio
- Programs: 3 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
- Locations: Austin, Cedar Hill, Dallas, Houston, Irving, Plano
- Programs: 2 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Master, Post- Bachelor's Certificate
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Study from Anywhere at Online Schools Related to This Career
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Associate
Colorado Technical University Online
- Programs: 4 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor, Doctorate, Master
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Master
International Academy of Design & Technology Online
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
- Programs: 2 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Coursework, Diploma
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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The University Of Texas At Austin • Austin, TX
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2011)
• 8/3/2011
"I feel fortunate to have studied here in my lifetime. The quality of teachers and research make it a worthy investment :-)"
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | If you can get accepted to the graduate school here, don't think twice - just come. But this college has a very low acceptance ratio :-( |
| Program Reputation | 10 | It's a top 10 program in CS. Hence , I will say it's extremely good. |
| Program Quality | 9 | The courses offered at the school were awesome and I feel fortunate to have studied under some of the best teachers in business like Prof. Alvisi, Prof. Plaxton, et al. |
| Instruction | 9 | The quality of instruction was pretty good and it helped me gain a lot of practical knowledge of the subject through the help of regular projects that were built into the courses. |
| How Difficult | 8 | Most of the courses are tough owing to the quality of students studying here. It's a top 10 college for computer science, so some of the best minds compete in graduate study. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The courses I took were mostly hands on with optional literature sometimes! More emphasis was given on the practical details of the subject. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | I took a summer course in the mathematics department. But there are not many graduate courses offered in the summer in computer science department. However a lot of undergraduate courses are offered. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Very good department, awesome infrastructure in the labs, and a great potential for cutting edge research is how I will describe it. |
| Social Life | 6 | The social experience for international graduate students is not great owing to too much work load while studying. Moreover, to make ends meet , international students have to work part-time too, so that kills the fun quite a bit. |
| Placement Services | 9 | The UT career services CNS is pretty good. They helped me a lot in getting a job :-) |
| Alumni Network | 8 | Again, since the college has a decent reputation, most of the alumni have good jobs in the industry |
University Of Houston • Houston, TX
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1985)
• 9/30/2011
"It was a great value, but I got no financial support or aide from the school. I had to spend an extra year in school because the most hours I could carry in a semester was 12, and sometimes the schedule put me in a bind that forced me to drop a class."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | no | Students and professors were great. I see nothing that says the school itself was helpful. |
| Program Reputation | 3 | The reputation was better before a local company was bought by a Houston company and proceeded to bring in the worst Houston had to offer. |
| Program Quality | 7 | Needed more engineering/reuse training. It taught me to be a life-long learner - taught myself OO, Web. |
| Instruction | 8 | I am currently completing my MBA and think all my old Computer Science teachers were more dedicated to teaching than my current professors. |
| How Difficult | 6 | It was the same curriculum that other people took. My analysis skills are better than my co-workers. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | One couldn't make it through the program if your programs didn't work. I still look at some of my old textbooks at my current job. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | I got the most out of my degree through evening classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | Graduate services were good then and are better now. Some websites have maintenance issues. |
| Social Life | 7 | Students were great, I learned a lot about working with a team. |
| Placement Services | 1 | I found my own job after school. My search included the placement service, but none of those leads worked out. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | The network is probably better in Houston. Most of the communication is Houston-based. |
University Of Texas At Dallas • Dallas, TX
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1996)
• 12/12/2011
"I am happy to be an alumnus of UTD. The school is doing great work and I enjoy being a part of its legacy."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | The CS program is well positioned for students going into the workforce in programming. I have taken classes in the Graduate program as well. |
| Program Reputation | 9 | UTD has a very good reputation. I would say the CS program is highly valued by industry in the state. |
| Program Quality | 9 | This is was quality school with strong instructors, small class size and affordable tuition. |
| Instruction | 9 | Great instructors attracted to the area. |
| How Difficult | 9 | The CS program is first-class. Challenging in theory and practice. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There was an even amount of book work and project work. I worked with a couple of classes where there were large team projects. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | There were opportunities to have late afternoon classes. I am not sure that the schedule is the same now that the university has grown. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | There was a fine PC lab run by the university and the CS department had a well equipped Unix lab. The online access to systems was always available. |
| Social Life | 7 | I made many longtime friends at the school. The commuter program was large so there were many students who left after the class day ended. |
| Placement Services | I haven't had opportunity to use them. I am not really able to comment. | |
| Alumni Network | 5 | The alumni network is still centered in the Dallas area. I do not work in the city so the opportunities to network are reduced. |
University Of Houston • Houston, TX
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2008)
• 1/10/2012
"I am quite satisfied with my university. It provided me with a good education that I still do use. The experience is also something that I will not soon forget."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I think that if finances are a problem, then UH is a great school. It provides a good education while not costing as much as other schools. In addition, it has a great network of alumni that can help students find jobs. |
| Program Reputation | 4 | The reputation for UH in Computer Science is growing, but not quite there yet. I think with a few more years, they will be able to get better rankings. |
| Program Quality | 6 | I find that the education I received was good. They were able to teach me many of the basic concepts of computers. However, once out in industry, I realized that most of the concepts are not useful for everyday problems. |
| Instruction | 5 | There was not too much preparation work for careers. Most of the courses were focused on teaching the basics and provided a wide coverage of computer science. Unfortunately, once I got a job, most of that coverage was not useful. |
| How Difficult | 3 | I did not find the academic workload to be that difficult. I was able to easily balance school and research without taking a hit to my grades. I do like this style because I was able to focus more on the actual things being taught in class as opposed to cramming for tests. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Unfortunately, most of the courses were quite book oriented. I think this is not a good thing since it really does not prepare you for the outside world. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 9 | The University of Houston is considered a commuting school, so they offered a variety of classes at different times. I find that this flexibility really helped in picking the right classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | The access that I had to these academic facilities was definitely above average. UH does not boost the best library system, but when supplemented with the Internet, I could find any information I needed. |
| Social Life | 8 | The school spirit is quite high at the university. There are always parties and social events that are being planed by various groups. |
| Placement Services | 6 | I think for some majors, this is better than for others. For CS, the job placement was okay. There was not high demand, but there were many job fairs. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | The University of Houston has an excellent alumni network that I have signed up for. They are able to list many different things, such as jobs, that are quite useful. |
Blinn College • Bryan, TX
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2004)
• 1/4/2012
"I was able to obtain my degree quickly, easily, and affordably, so I got what I went to the school to obtain. I can't say I learned much from my actual degree courses, but I did enjoy some of the other ones and found them worthwhile."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | As a staging ground to go to a four-year university, yes. The core curriculum classes at Blinn are much more accessible and easier on students than the big 200-300 student lectures found at universities. As their sole education? No, self-learning would be more valuable as the degree-specific contents is not relevant to the web application world. |
| Program Reputation | I never looked up the school's reputation for any particular major so I wouldn't feel qualified to rate it. The school seems to have a decent reputation and is a major launching point to the local university. | |
| Program Quality | 5 | Blinn provided a basic computer science degree that was completely useless for my actual career beyond giving me some letters. It needed more focus on web development, future thinking and theory versus being stuck with archaic languages. |
| Instruction | 7 | The professors taught their subjects well, but the degree just wasn't particularly relevant to my actual career area. It was very focused on a particular type of programming rather than being more holistic for a variety of programming options. I can't completely blame the school, however, as all computer science degrees at the time, and most today, are the same way. |
| How Difficult | 1 | I passed all of my classes with A's and B's and rarely found any of the work difficult. The workload was relatively easy, particular as I was able to take 90% of my degree via their online system, saving me the hassle of commuting and going to class. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | For my degree program, only a few classes went into hands on, such as the makeup class. Most were purely book or book and supplemental readings. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Blinn offered a wealth of classes online, both from their own class catalog and through a networked system allowing you to take classes from any Texas community college. They also had several classes available in the evening and most of their catalog available in the summer. The only frustration for me was that even though the Bryan campus has the bulk of their students, only the main campus in Brenham offered some classes, particularly around arts, music, etc., leaving few offerings for this areas beyond the online ones. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | It had a library but I never used it. There was a computer lab, which had good machines and was also where you took proctored tests, which was an excellent resource. Classes were good sized and had a good student/teacher ratio. I never used tutors or study groups, but most of my professors were available via email if I had questions. |
| Social Life | I didn't go to school to socialize, I went to learn, so I didn't really care one way or another about any of the social aspects. I was an adult student in a school of mostly teens, so I had little in common with my classmates. | |
| Placement Services | I've never used Blinn's job placement or career services so I can't rate this criteria. I already had a job when I finished the degree. | |
| Alumni Network | I've never really looked into their alumni network or the like, so I wouldn't feel it would be fair to rate it. It just isn't something that interests me or that would be relevant to me. I went to school to learn, not to make connections. |
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