At Rize, we’re dedicated to offering degree programs that provide students with a pathway to fulfilling employment in high-demand fields with better than average salaries. One of our very first programs was Computer Science given this criteria. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), software developers are among the highest paid professionals in the modern workforce with a median salary of $130,160 (2023). Furthermore, the BLS estimates that the number of software developer jobs will grow exceedingly rapidly (25%) from 2022 - 2032.
Strong labor market demand has translated into growing demand from students. According to Gray Decision Intelligence (DI), student demand indicators like Google Search Volume, New Student Enrollment & Completions data all rank in the 99th percentile.
Given this demand, it is unsurprising that over 1,000 institutions now offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, with median annual completions of 19 students. It has become a core, foundational degree across institution types. Despite this healthy competition, Gray DI’s program scorecard system still ranks the program in the 99th percentile for new programs given growing student and employer demand.
But offering a Computer Science degree isn’t enough to ensure positive student outcomes and pathways to fulfilling employment. According to Strada Education Foundation, nearly 40% of Computer Science graduates are unemployed. To further ensure graduates are well prepared for successful careers, we’ve updated our Computer Science curriculum as part of our ongoing program review and enhancement process. Below we share what makes our program unique and highlight the recent changes we’ve made.
Our Computer Science major is designed around real-world software development problems across 13 courses, culminating in a capstone project. The program has been developed in collaboration with industry and academic experts from Google, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, Capital One, Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, and W3Schools, by first defining the most valuable outcomes and the skills that students need to achieve them.
Our interviews with curriculum committee members and hiring managers from Fortune 500 companies, exposed perceived shortcomings of typical computer science programs. The core concerns of hiring managers were that existing computer science degrees placed too much emphasis on theoretical concepts and not enough on practical skills for programming, such as testing, team collaboration, and software deployment, placing the burden on the employer to build these skills. They also shared concerns over the accessibility of computer science, noting that most successful graduates typically had prior programming experience, and they felt that this detrimentally affected the diversity of the graduate pool.
To address these concerns, our Computer Science major is designed to specifically achieve the following:
The field of Computer Science has evolved significantly, offering a broad spectrum of career opportunities. The most common pathway for graduates is to become a software engineer. This role involves designing, developing, testing, and maintaining software applications by utilizing the technical and analytical skills developed during a Computer Science degree. Additional target outcomes are listed below.
Our unique approach to curriculum development and course design involves bringing together academic experts and industry leaders to form curriculum committees alongside instructional designers and instructors specializing in the online modality to create best-in-class programs. Leveraging this collaborative approach, our CS program was designed by:
The curriculum committee evaluates the Computer Science program on an annual basis.
Their most recent recommendations were to focus on software testing, deployment, AI, and architectural design—key skills for today's tech professionals.
As a result, new topics have been added on software testing, deployment, and architectural design to mirror the competencies. Math requirements have also become more flexible, removing Calculus for Discrete Mathematics, in order to make the program more accessible. Additionally, to better prepare students for technical interviews, the course sequence has been restructured to introduce Algorithms and Data Structures earlier.
Rize’s career-focused Computer Science program ensures that students are prepared to succeed in the workforce with real-world, practical skills and a valuable portfolio of work to add to their resume before they even graduate. Students gain programming experience, as well as hands-on experience in areas such as testing, team collaboration, and software deployment. By partnering with industry leaders from Fortune 500 companies like Google, Meta, and Amazon, and academic experts from Harvard University, University of Michigan, and more, our Computer Science program delivers an exceptional student experience with a high level of rigor.
If you’re interested in learning more about our Computer Science program and offering programs powered by Rize on your campus, request a call with our Academic Partnerships team.
