Information Technology, Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering or Information Systems?

A very common question we are asked is “What are the differences between Information Technology and computer science, software engineering, computer engineering and/or management information systems?” While Information Technology has some roots in computer science (among other fields), there are some important differences, which can help to define IT. These differences fall into professional and curricular categories.

At the professional level, the computer scientist, software engineer and computer engineer all tend to view computing from the computer’s viewpoint by creating, developing and extending the underlying technology, while the information technologist tends to apply available technology to solve real-world problems for people. The computer scientist tends to be motivated by the computer itself, by how it works under the hood, while the information technologist is motivated by using the computer as a tool to solve problems for people. Another way of describing the difference is that the information technologist identifies a need for underlying technology, which the computer scientist then creates if it doesn’t already exist, and which the information technologist adapts and helps people to use effectively.

To illustrate the differences among IT, CS, SE and CE, let’s look at stereotypic roles each kind of professional would play in a computing domain, specifically game design and development. The game industry is enjoying explosive growth, and its technological spin-offs are impacting society in general, much as the space program in the 1960’s did, when the technology developed to get us to the moon found applications throughout all sectors of society. RIT’s IT department has created a new BS program in Game Design and Development, which has been approved by the NYS Department of Education and will be welcoming its inaugural class of freshmen in the fall of 2007. Admission into this new program is currently closed for fall 2007 but applications are being accepted for the fall of 2008. More information is available elsewhere on this Web site and at games.rit.edu.

Game development is, in many ways, a microcosm of both general IT and specific IT because there are clearly defined roles for all computing majors to play in a game development enterprise, and every IT pillar is represented in a typical game application. The computer engineer would design the actual game platform, the hardware and low-level software. The software engineer would design the software architecture in which specific games would be developed and facilitate on-time development of reliable components. The computer scientist would develop efficient underlying algorithms for the game engines. The IT professional would focus on specific games from the player’s perspective.

At the curricular level, information technology differs from CS, SE and CE in many respects. First, there is a stronger emphasis on traditional programming in CS, SE and CE than in Information Technology. Information Technologists certainly build software applications, and programming is certainly a foundation skill in IT, but the style of programming in IT differs from that in CS or SE. The typical IT project involves gluing together available components in high-level environments and providing an accessible interface to the functionality those components provide. The typical CS or SE application involves writing large programs from scratch using traditional programming languages and focusing on software architecture, data structures and algorithm development issues. CS and SE also require significantly more math and science than Information Technology, mainly because extending the underlying technology requires a more thorough mathematical foundation than applying that technology. Finally, the CS and SE curricula are “deeper” in that there are more required prerequisites for the intermediate and advanced courses in CS and SE. Information technology has a flatter prerequisite structure, which facilitates the transfer of students into IT from other majors.

For this reason, we recommend that if you really can’t decide between CS and IT or between SE and IT, start in CS or SE because CS credits will transfer to IT more easily than vice versa and “catching up” in IT is more feasible.

The main difference between information technology and information systems (IS), also called management information systems (MIS) or computer information systems (CIS), is that IS is a business program that focuses on the applications and implications of computing in the business domain. IS students take the Business core and approach computing from the perspective of a manager in the business world. IT does not focus on any single domain in which IT is practiced, but instead focuses on the selection, integration and deployment of computing technology throughout society.

If you see yourself as business person first, for example someone who wants to wear the suit and climb the corporate ladder with the aspiration of becoming Corporate Information Officer for some enterprise, then the IS program could be a good match because you would acquire the business skills to thrive in the Board Room and learn enough about the technology to make sound strategic decisions. On the other hand, if you see yourself as a technologist first, for example someone who will plan and deploy networking infrastructure or integrate databases or build significant Web sites, then the IT program is probably a better fit, even if you end up working in a traditional business firm like a financial institution.