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Software engineer/technical lead education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a software engineer/technical lead. Software engineers/technical lead usually study computer science, electrical engineering, or computer engineering. 68% of software engineers/technical lead hold a bachelor's degree, and 25% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 1,009 real software engineer/technical lead resumes to see exactly what software engineer/technical lead education sections show.
The most common colleges for software engineers/technical lead are the University of Massachusetts Boston and the University of Massachusetts Boston.
There are also many online software engineer/technical lead courses to help get the education required to be a software engineer/technical lead.
What education do you need to become a software engineer/technical lead?
What degree do you need to be a software engineer/technical lead?
- Bachelor's, 68%
- Master's, 25%
- Associate, 4%
- Doctorate, 2%
- Other Degrees, 1%
What should I major in to become a software engineer/technical lead?
- Computer Science, 35%
- Computer Engineering, 12%
- Other Majors, 31%
Most common colleges for software engineers/technical lead
| Software engineer/technical lead common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Massachusetts Boston | 7.77% |
| Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 6.80% |
| University of California, Santa Barbara | 6.80% |
| Northeastern University | 5.83% |
| California State University - San Bernardino | 5.83% |
Best majors for software engineers/technical lead
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Computer Science | 35.1% |
| 2 | Electrical Engineering | 16.7% |
| 3 | Computer Engineering | 12.0% |
| 4 | Computer Applications | 4.8% |
| 5 | Computer Information Systems | 4.3% |
Best colleges for software engineers/technical lead
The best colleges for software engineers/technical lead are Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, and Harvard University.
A software engineer/technical lead with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for software engineers/technical lead. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become software engineers/technical lead.
1. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
2. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$55,695
Enrollment
6,596
3. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Enrollment
31,503
4. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
5. Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, GA • Private
In-state tuition
$12,424
Enrollment
15,201
6. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Private
In-state tuition
$9,992
Enrollment
33,495
7. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
8. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
9. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Pomona, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,353
Enrollment
24,841
10. University of California - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$13,226
Enrollment
31,568
20 best online courses for software engineers/technical lead
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Design and develop modern web applications.Students will also learn how to deploy a Flask-based web application to the cloud using Docker and Kubernetes...
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Build REST Api's With Asp.Net , Entity Framework and C#...
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Create robust predictive models with statistics and Python programming. Build confidence and credibility to tackle complex machine learning problems on the job. This course is offered in person and live online, in a remote classroom setting...
8. Python Programming (Part Time)
Gain fluency in Python — the world's fastest-growing major programming language — and start leveraging its versatile capabilities to build web and data science applications. This course is offered in person and live online, in a remote classroom setting...
9. Android Kotlin Developer
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Master the Swift programming language, and create a portfolio of iOS apps for iPhone and iPad to showcase your skills!...
17. C#.NET Core 7 with MS SQL Complete Beginner to Master 2023
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Build REST Api's with Asp.Net Core , Entity Framework Core and C#...
19. React Development (Part Time)
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20. Intro to Coding
Discover if coding is a career fit for you In this free, two-hour livestream, explore the building blocks of the web — HTML and CSS — and learn how you can apply these programming languages to develop your own simple sites. All in real time, taught by an industry professional. Come learn the basics and gain the skills you need to write your first line of code!...
Top 10 most affordable universities for software engineers/technical lead
The most affordable schools for software engineers/technical lead are California State University - Long Beach, california state university - bakersfield, and brigham young university.
If the best universities for software engineers/technical lead are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for software engineers/technical lead.
1. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
2. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
3. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
4. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez
Mayaguez, PR • Private
In-state tuition
$4,094
Cost of attendance
14,302
5. California State University - Fullerton
Fullerton, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,886
Cost of attendance
17,645
6. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
7. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Pomona, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,353
Cost of attendance
21,302
8. City College of New York of the City University of New York, The
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,140
Cost of attendance
14,430
9. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Cost of attendance
20,456
10. California State University - Fresno
Fresno, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,587
Cost of attendance
16,915
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for software engineers/technical lead
The hardest universities for software engineers/technical lead to get into are Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, and Harvard University.
Some great schools for software engineers/technical lead are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for software engineers/technical lead based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
2. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
3. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
4. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
Admissions rate
9%
SAT average
1,516
5. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
17%
SAT average
1,507
6. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
7. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,506
8. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
9. Tufts University
Medford, MA • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,461
10. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
19%
SAT average
1,466
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for software engineers/technical lead
The easiest schools for software engineers/technical lead to get into are Capitol Technology University, oregon institute of technology, and san francisco state university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a software engineer/technical lead without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for software engineers/technical lead.
1. Capitol Technology University
Laurel, MD • Private
Admissions rate
69%
SAT average
1,070
2. Oregon Institute of Technology
Klamath Falls, OR • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,139
3. San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA • Private
Admissions rate
72%
SAT average
1,054
4. Saint Cloud State University
Saint Cloud, MN • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
1,086
5. Linfield College
McMinnville, OR • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
1,117
6. The University of Texas at El Paso
El Paso, TX • Private
Admissions rate
100%
SAT average
1,035
7. Portland State University
Portland, OR • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
1,111
8. Cleveland State University
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
88%
SAT average
1,111
9. Suffolk University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
85%
SAT average
1,131
10. Purdue University Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne, IN • Private
Admissions rate
97%
SAT average
1,080
Average software engineer/technical lead salary by education level
| Software engineer/technical lead education level | Software engineer/technical lead salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $131,024 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $120,811 |
| Doctorate Degree | $141,322 |
Software engineer/technical lead education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025