2 Best Colleges for Computer Science in Mississippi
Public universities dominate our list of the best colleges for computer science in Mississippi, with two programs fighting closely for the top spot.
Computer science prepares you for a job as a software developer—named the best job in America by U.S. News and World Report. Software developers code the systems, programs and apps that we couldn’t live without, and they get paid well to do so. The Occupational Outlook Handbook reports a median annual salary of $105,590, and these jobs aren’t going away. The OOH predicts 21% job growth over the next ten years.
If you’re interested in computer science, you can also check out College Guidepost’s rankings for the best value colleges in computer science, as well as the best overall. In this article, we’ll just cover the best colleges for computer science in Mississippi.
Let’s start with our honorable mentions and then get to the top two.
Honorable Mention: Jackson State University, Mississippi Valley State University, and the University of Southern Mississippi are the three universities with ABET-accredited programs in computer science that didn’t make our top two.
2. University of Mississippi
With about 24,000 students, the University of Mississippi is the biggest university in the state. Mississippi’s flagship university remains the highest-ranked university in the state.
The computer science department includes both a B.S. and B.A. in computer science, with new B.S. programs in computer security and data science launched in 2020. Ranked in the top 150 in computer science by U.S. News and accredited by ABET, the University of Mississippi is a fine choice for computer science majors.
With in-state tuition and fees under $9,000 a year, Ole Miss is also a great deal for Mississippi residents.
1. Mississippi State University
Mississippi State competes closely with Ole Miss for both the highest enrollment and best academic reputation in the state. While others rank it behind Ole Miss, Washington Monthly ranked Mississippi State 1st among the state’s public universities. Their statistics showed Mississippi State outdoing Ole Miss in multiple categories—research expenditures, faculty in national academies, and the number of students who went on to earn doctorates.
Mississippi State’s computer science department is also the highest ranked in the state by U.S. News, offering both a B.S. and a 5-year B.S to M.S. option. Tuition and fees cost less than $9,000 a year for Mississippi residents, so you won’t find a better value anywhere in the state.
With the most respected computer science program in the state, Mississippi State is our top choice for computer science majors.
Thanks for reading! If you’d like to see the best colleges for computer science in another state, you can find the index here.