Electrical Engineering vs Computer Engineering

How each major is officially classified

Both definitions below are the official U.S. Department of Education (NCES) CIP 2020 descriptions — not CampusPin summaries.

What you actually study

Where each major leads

The federal CIP–SOC crosswalk maps each academic program to the occupations it is designed to feed. Comparing the two lists shows where Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering converge and where they part. Every wage below is the BLS 2024 national median for that occupation — not an outcome for the major, and not a starting salary.

A major does not restrict you to these occupations, and plenty of graduates work outside them. The mapping describes what each program is built to prepare you for.

Which one tends to suit which student

This part is CampusPin’s judgement, not a measurement. Neither major is better; they suit different temperaments.

What to ask each department

Curricula vary far more between institutions than between these two majors. These questions surface the differences that actually matter for this choice.

1. 1Are these two degrees taught by the same department here, and how many courses actually differ between them?
2. 2How much electromagnetics and power does the electrical degree require, and is any of it optional?
3. 3Does the computer engineering degree include enough software coursework for the roles I want, or would I need electives from computer science?
4. 4Which of the two do the hardware employers recruiting on this campus ask for by name?

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a Electrical Engineering and a Computer Engineering major?

Electrical engineering covers the whole of electricity as a discipline — circuits, signals, electromagnetics, control and power systems — of which digital computing is one branch. Computer engineering takes the digital branch and goes deeper: computer architecture, digital logic, embedded systems and the software that runs close to hardware. The honest description is that computer engineering is a specialisation that many schools split out of electrical engineering, not a separate tradition.

Do Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering lead to the same jobs?

Partly. The federal CIP–SOC crosswalk maps both programs to 3 of the same occupations — including Architectural and Engineering Managers, Computer Hardware Engineers, Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary. It also maps 3 occupations to Electrical Engineering that it does not map to Computer Engineering, and 4 to Computer Engineering that it does not map to Electrical Engineering. A degree is not a restriction — graduates work outside these lists routinely — but the mapping shows where each program is designed to lead.

Which pays more, Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering?

CampusPin does not publish a "higher-paying major" answer, because the data does not support one. BLS reports median wages by OCCUPATION, not by college major, and both of these majors lead to a range of occupations that overlap. The per-occupation medians on this page are the honest version of that question: compare the specific roles you are actually interested in, and remember that pay varies widely by employer, region, and experience.

Is there anything commonly misunderstood about choosing between Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering?

At many universities these two share most of a curriculum and differ by a handful of upper-level courses, so the choice is smaller than the separate names suggest. The federal crosswalk associates both with computer-hardware and electronics engineering occupations; the meaningful question is which electives you want, not which door is open.