Find Tech Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools

173 Schools Ranked

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for computer science students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools and bootcamp that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Computer Science Degree Search has developed this Best Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 173 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best doctor's degree programs for computer science students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

Top Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools in the United States

Learn more about these excellent schools below:

#1

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
$58,443 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named California Institute of Technology the best school in the United States for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree.

Full California Institute of Technology Report

#2

Stanford University

Stanford, California
$55,011 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 173 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Stanford University landed the # 2 spot on the list.

Online graduate courses are available at Stanford, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 10% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Full Stanford University Report

#3

Rice University

Houston, Texas
$49,941 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent doctor’s degree programs at Rice University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best computer science schools in the United States.

You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Rice. In fact, around 86% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Read full report on Rice University

#4

Brown University

Providence, Rhode Island
$62,083 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Brown University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools list.

Brown does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 59% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Read full report on Brown University

#5

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
$42,932 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools list.

Online graduate courses are available at UPenn, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 74% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Full University of Pennsylvania Report

#6

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, Massachusetts
$58,967 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, Massachusetts Institute of Technology did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree.

MIT is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each graduate student at the school took at least one class online.

Read full report on Massachusetts Institute of Technology

#7

Yale University

New Haven, Connecticut

With a ranking of #7, Yale University did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree.

Online graduate courses are available at Yale, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 98% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Read full report on Yale University

#8

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
$47,347 Average Tuition & Fees

Carnegie Mellon University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best doctor’s degree computer science programs.

If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Carnegie Mellon does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In 2019-2020 about 6% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Full Carnegie Mellon University Report

#9

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, Maryland
$61,202 Average Tuition & Fees

Johns Hopkins University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for computer science students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list.

Johns Hopkins does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 85% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Full Johns Hopkins University Report

#10

Cornell University

Ithaca, New York
$30,006 Average Tuition & Fees

Cornell University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for computer science students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list.

Online graduate courses are available at Cornell, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 85% took at least some of their classes online.

Read More…

#11

Duke University

Durham, North Carolina
$59,141 Average Tuition & Fees

Duke University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools list.

You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Duke. During the 2019-2020 year, about 2% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Read full report on Duke University

$16,764 Average Tuition & Fees

Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best doctor’s degree computer science programs.

You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Georgia Tech. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 88% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Read full report on Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus

#13

Harvard University

Cambridge, Massachusetts
$52,170 Average Tuition & Fees

Harvard University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Harvard. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 96% took at least some of their classes online.

Read More…

The University of Texas at Austin came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking.

Online graduate courses are available at UT Austin, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 66% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Read full report on The University of Texas at Austin

#15

University of California - Berkeley

Berkeley, California
$14,160 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #15, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UC Berkeley. In fact, around 90% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Full University of California - Berkeley Report

#16

University of Virginia - Main Campus

Charlottesville, Virginia
$20,906 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Virginia - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for computer science students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #16 on the list.

Online graduate courses are available at University of Virginia, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 75% took at least some of their classes online.

Full University of Virginia - Main Campus Report

#17

Dartmouth College

Hanover, New Hampshire
$59,283 Average Tuition & Fees

Dartmouth College came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking.

One thing to take note of is that Dartmouth does offer online graduate classes in some areas. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 57% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Read More…

#18

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, Virginia
$16,522 Average Tuition & Fees

Virginia Tech landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best doctor’s degree computer science programs.

If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Virginia Tech does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 63% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Full Virginia Tech Report

$17,823 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for computer science students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list.

UIUC does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. During the 2019-2020 year, about 90% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Read full report on University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

#20

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, Tennessee
$52,162 Average Tuition & Fees

Vanderbilt University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for computer science students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list.

Vanderbilt does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. During the 2019-2020 year, about 67% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Full Vanderbilt University Report

#21

University of Wisconsin - Madison

Madison, Wisconsin
$12,175 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #21, University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree.

UW - Madison does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. In 2019-2020 about 75% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Full University of Wisconsin - Madison Report

$17,754 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #22, University of Washington - Seattle Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree.

Online graduate courses are available at UW Seattle, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 7% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Full University of Washington - Seattle Campus Report

#23

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois
$56,567 Average Tuition & Fees

Northwestern University ranked #23 on this year’s Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools list.

If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Northwestern does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 2% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Read full report on Northwestern University

#24

Michigan State University

East Lansing, Michigan

Michigan State University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking.

Michigan State does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 65% took at least some of their classes online.

Read full report on Michigan State University

$35,802 Average Tuition & Fees

Southern Methodist University landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best doctor’s degree computer science programs.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at SMU. During the 2019-2020 year, about 40% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Read full report on Southern Methodist University

Rest of the Top 15% Best Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools in the United States

Not only did these schools make the top 26 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

#26

University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, Maryland

Honorable Mentions

These schools also performed well in our best computer science schools ranking:

Rank School Location
27 University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
28 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
29 University of Chicago Chicago, IL
30 University of Delaware Newark, DE
30 Georgetown University Washington, DC
32 University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln, NE
33 Tufts University Medford, MA
34 Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO
35 New York University New York, NY

Notes and References

Footnotes

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

References

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Computer Science Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited computer and technology colleges across the U.S.