Apps and Websites
Design the user interface, build the APIs and database behind it, and deploy the whole stack. You launch your first website your first semester.
Computer Science & Software Engineering at BYU-Idaho
Build What Comes Next.
Technology keeps getting smarter. We don’t settle for the technology we inherit. We challenge it, improve it, and decide what gets built. Come build it with us.
- Program from day one
- Team projects by semester two
- An internship built in
We want to enhance critical thinking, problem solving, and creativity.
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles “Becoming BYU in an Age of Artificial Intelligence,” BYU University Conference, August 24, 2026
Your Ideas. Your Hands. Your Name on It.
We Make Real Things.
You decide what to build. You design it, program it, test it, and ship it, and real people use it. Every decision is yours, and so is the result. Here is the kind of work you will do, from your first semester to your senior project.
Code inside Real Devices
Cars, medical equipment, and smart gadgets all run on firmware someone had to write. Program microcontrollers, read sensors, and make hardware respond in real time.
Security
Reverse engineer systems, run penetration tests, and patch vulnerabilities before an attacker finds them. Sharpen your skills with the Society of Cybersecurity.
Data and Machine Learning
Clean raw data with Python and SQL, train machine learning models, and learn how intelligent systems work from the inside out.
Systems That Scale
Pick the right data structures and algorithms, run work in parallel, and ship to the cloud through a DevOps pipeline. Fast for ten users or ten million.
Products for Real People
Interview users, prototype the UI/UX, track every change in version control, and ship with a real team, starting with the Freshman Discovery Project your second semester.
Try It: 60 Seconds
Guide the Robot
Tap command blocks to build a program that steers the robot to the gold target, then press Run. Earn all three stars with the shortest path and the fewest blocks.
Skills You Are Practicing
This puzzle runs on HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and a search algorithm that finds the best possible answer. You can learn to build tools like it.
Turn on JavaScript to play the robot puzzle.
People First. Tools Second.
Challenge It. Improve It. Build What Comes Next.
Tools can generate a first draft. We train the people who decide what is worth building, whether it works, and who it helps.
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Challenge It
Question every answer, even the confident ones. Reverse engineer systems, trace bugs to their source, and find the flaw everyone else missed.
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Improve It
Master the fundamentals from scratch: Variables, classes, data structures, and algorithms. Then make software faster, safer, and easier to use.
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Build What Comes Next
Ship real products with real teammates from your second semester on. Put every modern tool to work, including AI, and own the result.
Find Your Fit
Computer Science or Software Engineering?
Both majors teach you to program, collaborate, and build, and both share nearly the same first year. The difference is the kind of problem that lights you up.
Computer Science
Solve Hard Problems
How do you make a computer solve a hard problem fast, and prove the answer is right?
You Might Love This If You
- Love logic puzzles, math, and finding the most efficient answer
- Want to know how computers work underneath, down to the hardware
- Wonder how search engines, maps, and smart systems really work
- Might want graduate school someday
Software Engineering
Build Things People Use
How do you build software a whole team can trust and real people love to use?
You Might Love This If You
- Like making things people actually use
- Enjoy UI/UX design, teamwork, and watching a product come together
- Want to specialize in software design, full stack web, embedded systems, or quality assurance
- Want to go straight into industry
You Do Not Have to Decide on Day One
Both majors start with CSE 110 Introduction to Programming, web fundamentals, and computer systems. Start now and choose once you know what you enjoy.
Life Here
Find Your People
Every Wednesday at 5:00 PM, the STC quad turns into a hangout for builders. Grab some food, open your laptop, and hack on projects with friends who are into cyber defense, cloud apps, data, drones, and more.
Where It Can Lead
Real Careers, in Plain Words
Job titles can sound vague. Here is what people in these roles actually do all day, and what graduates have reported earning.
- Builds the apps and websites people use every day
- Software Engineer
- Designs the architecture: How services, databases, and APIs fit together so the system never falls over
- Software Architect
- Writes automated tests and tries to break the software before a customer does
- Quality Assurance Engineer
- Writes the firmware inside cars, medical equipment, and smart devices
- Embedded Systems Engineer
- Builds the front end you see and the back end, APIs, and databases behind it
- Full Stack Web Developer
Average Salary after Graduation
- Computer Science, starting
- $79,787
- Computer Science, 10 years
- $138,529
- Software Engineering, starting
- $74,476
- Software Engineering, 5 years
- $113,931
Reported average earnings for BYU-Idaho graduates of each major, from federal Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) data as published on the Computer Science and Software Engineering major pages. Starting salary means earnings in the first year after graduation. Earnings vary by person and are not a guarantee.
Straight Answers
Questions Students Ask Us
Good questions deserve honest answers. Do not see yours? Ask BYU-Idaho AI or reach out to the CSE Department.
I Have Never Programmed. Can I Start Here?
Yes. Both majors begin with CSE 110 Introduction to Programming in your first semester. Many students write their very first program there.
Already programming? Take the Programming Placement Test (LUC). Pass it, skip CSE 110, and jump straight to CSE 111 Programming with Functions.
Why Learn to Program When Computers Can Write Code?
Because generated code is only a first draft, and someone has to know whether it is right. That takes skills no prompt replaces: User research to learn what people actually need, UI/UX design that makes software usable, system architecture that holds up under real traffic, security testing that catches vulnerabilities, and the debugging and reverse engineering it takes to fix what breaks. Our students learn the newest tools, including AI, and learn enough to direct them, check them, and stand behind the result.
Are There Still Jobs?
Yes, and the field is changing. Entry-level hiring is more competitive than it was a few years ago, so employers look for graduates who can show what they have built: Deployed apps, code they can walk through in a technical interview, team projects, and internship experience. Both majors build that portfolio with team projects, a professional readiness course, and an internship.
Do I Need to Be Good at Math?
You need to be willing to work at it. Computer Science includes calculus and discrete math, the math behind algorithms, cryptography, and machine learning. Software Engineering plans include a quantitative reasoning or statistics course and lean more on design and teamwork. In both, clear logical thinking matters more than being a “math person,” and it grows with practice.
Will I Just Sit Alone at a Computer?
Not even close. You work on teams starting in your second semester, review each other’s code, demo your work, test it with real users, and join societies that defend networks, launch cloud apps, and design a hybrid electric race car.
How Are New Tools like AI Handled in Class?
Clearly. Each instructor sets expectations for when tools like AI may be used in their course, and students are expected to do their own work and be honest about how they used any tool. Read BYU-Idaho’s guidance on academic integrity and AI use.
Your Next Step
Start Building What Comes Next
Apply to BYU-Idaho, explore a major, or get a quick answer to your question. Your first project is closer than you think.