By: The Capella University Editorial Team with Bradly E. Roh, PhD, DBA and Interim Dean and Vice President for the School of Business, Technology and Health Care Administration
Reading Time: 8 minutes
Job growth projections and salary figures are drawn from Lightcast data and reflect national trends. Actual outcomes vary based on factors such as experience, industry, location, skills and economic conditions and are not representative of Capella University graduate results.
Information technology (IT) and computer science professionals both work with computers and systems, but the two fields solve different problems. IT manages the technology businesses rely on every day. Computer science builds the technology in the first place.
That distinction shapes the coursework, the skills you need and the careers each degree opens up. If you’re considering a bachelor’s degree in either, the choice comes down to what type of job you want to pursue once you graduate.
Read on for how the two degrees compare and how to figure out which one fits you.
What is information technology?
IT professionals design, manage and support the systems a company depends on every day, from cloud infrastructure to internal databases to cybersecurity.
A typical week might mean troubleshooting a network outage, setting up new laptops, updating security patches, managing who can access internal tools or helping migrate a database to the cloud. The impact shows up in whether the rest of the company can work without hitting technical roadblocks.
IT professionals work almost everywhere. Hospitals, banks, retail chains, government agencies, universities and tech companies all rely on IT teams. The scope changes by employer, but the goal is the same: keep the technology that powers the business reliable, secure and available.
What is computer science?
Computer science is the study of how computers solve problems and the practice of building the software and algorithms that put those solutions to work. While IT keeps existing systems running, computer science focuses on creating new ones from the ground up.
Computer scientists work with algorithms, data structures, mathematics and computational logic – the principles that decide how a program runs and how efficiently it handles data at scale. That grounding allows them to design software that works reliably when millions of people use it at once.
A computer scientist might write and test code, design a new application, train a machine learning model or work out how to make an existing system faster.
The field runs deep in software companies, but its skills reach into finance, healthcare, research and almost any industry building its own technology.
How information technology and computer science differ
The cleanest way to separate the two is by their relationship to technology. IT manages the technology an organization already runs on, while computer science builds that technology from the ground up. The coursework, the skills and the daily work all follow from that.
The table below compares them across the dimensions that matter most when choosing a degree.
| Dimension | Information technology | Computer science |
|---|---|---|
Core focus |
Managing and maintaining technology systems |
Creating software, algorithms and computational tools |
Coursework |
Networks, systems administration, cybersecurity, database management |
Algorithms, data structures, programming, math |
Skills |
Troubleshooting, network configuration, system security |
Programming languages, computational thinking, problem-solving |
Common roles |
Network administrator, systems administrator, cybersecurity analyst, IT support |
Software engineer, data scientist, machine learning engineer, systems architect |
Learning style |
Applied and hands-on |
Theoretical and math-heavy |
IT is a practical, applied discipline that aims to enable other teams. Good work means a system that stays up and remains secure. The learning centers on current tools, real setups and problems that need solving today.
Melissa Zgola, EdD, Program Director of Capella’s School of Business, Technology, and Health Care Administration’s bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in technology, describes the breadth of hands-on work IT students take on: “Capella’s IT students have had the opportunity to work on a wide range of projects, including cloud infrastructure, data security, project management and more. They’ve conducted website audits and designed web application prototypes. They’ve conducted data analyses and developed dashboards of organizational results. These are very meaty and meaningful projects. It’s truly a win-win for everyone involved,” Zgola says.
Computer science work aims to develop new systems to solve problems that current technology can’t solve. Before the code comes the reasoning behind it, such as why one algorithm beats another, how data behaves at scale or what a program can and can’t do in principle, which is the type of thinking and analysis that goes into a computer science role, as well as the actual building of the new systems.
The two fields overlap more than their definitions suggest, and cybersecurity is the clearest case in point.
An IT specialist hardens systems and responds to threats, while a computer science engineer builds the underlying encryption or detection logic. Same problem, different layers.
Cloud and data work split the same way. IT runs the environment, computer science builds the software and models inside it. The two overlap in many ways, which is why you find roles that draw on both.
Some degrees sit right on that overlap. Capella’s Bachelor of Science (BS) in Information Technology – Software Development in an Internet of Things Space blends applied IT with real software development, a fit for anyone drawn to managing systems and building software for them.
Careers and skills in each field
Both fields can help you pursue a career, but they point in different directions. Whichever direction fits, Capella pairs both programs with one-on-one career coaching to help you connect what you’re learning to the roles you want to pursue.
Note that the job titles, roles and descriptions in this article are examples of common positions in each field and are not guaranteed outcomes of completing a Capella University program. Actual career paths depend on factors including experience, skills, location and market conditions.
IT roles sit close to the systems a business runs on, from network and systems administration to cybersecurity, IT support and cloud computing. As you move up, roles may shift from maintaining systems to designing and securing them.
The skills are hands-on and include troubleshooting, network configuration, system security, cloud platforms and database management.
Students can earn certifications alongside the degree, which is why many IT professionals add credentials from bodies like CompTIA to pursue specific roles.
IT’s strength is scale and stability. According to Lightcast, network and systems administrators earn a median of $99,133 as of 2025. It is a large, established field where skilled people stay in demand. These figures reflect national labor market trends, not Capella University graduate outcomes. Individual results vary.
Capella’s BS in Information Technology covers networks, systems and security directly, with specializations from cybersecurity to network administration.
Computer science roles involve building software and working with data, from software engineers and application developers to data scientists and systems architects.
Core skills in computer science include programming, algorithm design, computational thinking and software development, the toolkit for creating technology rather than maintaining it.
Computer science’s strengths are growth and earning potential. According to Lightcast, software developers earn a median of $135,990 as of 2025. These figures reflect national labor market trends, not Capella University graduate outcomes. Individual results vary.
Capella’s BS in Computer Science builds the programming and problem-solving foundation these roles rest on.
How to decide between an IT and a computer science degree
The right choice comes down to you, your background, the kind of learning you enjoy and where you want your career to go.
If you prefer hands-on work with results you can see quickly, IT could feel natural to you. You spend your time on real systems and real fixes. If you are drawn to math, logic and abstract problem-solving, computer science might suit you better, since the early coursework leans heavily on theory before it turns practical.
Think about what you want to be doing day to day. IT work centers on keeping an organization’s technology running, secure and available, so your time goes to the systems people depend on.
Computer science work centers on building technology from scratch, so your time goes to writing, testing and designing software. The work is valued in both fields, but the difference is the work itself.
Think about how much room you want to move later. A computer science degree tends to span a wider range of specializations, since its theoretical foundation carries over into areas like AI, machine learning and research.
An IT degree tends to point toward specific roles and it pairs well with certifications if you want a more structured route into the workforce.
The two also meet in the middle. Some IT programs fold software development into an applied IT foundation, letting you write code and build applications while still learning how systems, networks and infrastructure fit together.
Capella’s BS in IT with a Software Development in an Internet of Things Space specialization is one example, blending applied IT work with software development for connected systems like smart devices, sensors and industrial IoT platforms.
Finding your path in tech
Choosing between IT and computer science comes down to the kind of work you want to do and how you learn best. IT gives you a hands-on route into managing the technology that keeps organizations running. Computer science gives you a theoretical foundation for building software, systems and algorithms from scratch.
Look at your background, your strengths and the type of role you want a few years from now. Both fields may open doors to strong careers, and the right choice is the one that fits how you want to spend your time.
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