What do you learn in a bachelor's in software engineering?
Having the ability to create your own software programs or the skill to support the major applications that power businesses is a recipe for a rewarding career. A common first step in making this a reality is earning a bachelor's in software engineering degree.
Discover what you can expect to learn in a bachelor's in software engineering program and the graduation requirements to earn the degree.
What to expect from a software engineering bachelor's program
A bachelor's in software engineering program aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to design, build, maintain, and support a wide range of software programs and applications. The program walks students through understanding and planning frameworks, learning the coding languages needed to turn ideas into reality, and gaining the supporting skills needed to succeed in the industry.
While a bachelor's in software engineering degree only takes about four years to earn, many students find earning a postgraduate degree or additional certifications helpful in setting themselves up for career success.
Bachelor's in software engineering curriculum
The curriculum you'll find in most bachelor's in software engineering programs is heavy on coding languages, technical frameworks, and math. Here are a few of the common courses students may see with this program:
- Programming fundamentals: Students gain a high-level overview of the basic fundamentals of programming, including the basics of coding, control structures, debugging techniques, and the framework for solving programming challenges properly.
- Software architecture and design: Students learn the highly technical aspects of how software code is structured and designed to build effective, efficient, and reliable applications.
- Human-computer interaction: This course offers a unique study of how humans interact with computer programs and how these interactions should affect software design through a process called user-centered design (UCD).
Specializations and concentrations
Many software engineering programs allow you to choose a concentration and become an expert in that particular area instead of trying to be a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.
Here are a few of the common specializations within the program:
- Mobile app development: Students can specialize in understanding the design, coding, and deployment of mobile applications for iOS and/or Android operating systems.
- Game development: This specialization offers courses that teach students what they need to know to work on popular consoles, apps, or web-based games. Additionally, the skills developed in this specialization may be desirable for students interested in learning to build their own games.
- Cybersecurity: Intricate software applications often protect businesses' and individuals' data. A concentration in this area teaches students how to identify software security vulnerabilities and how to eliminate these threats proactively.
Graduation requirements for a software engineering bachelor's degree
Software engineering programs can be quite demanding but still only take, on average, around four years to complete, much like other bachelor's programs. Students are required to earn around 120 credits, composed of a mix of required general education courses, foundational software engineering courses, and higher-level, more-specialized elective courses.
In addition to the traditional credit requirements, most schools require students pursuing a bachelor's in software engineering degree to complete a capstone project to demonstrate the skills they've learned. This could be building a web-based application, building a mobile application, developing a software-based solution to an existing problem, creating a game from scratch, or working with a team of other students to accomplish a predetermined goal through the use of software.