BA/BS in Computer Science

The computer science major at Grinnell College pairs practical software development with the theory beneath it. Students learn the fundamentals of computing and reason carefully about the systems they build, which prepares them for graduate work and for careers in application development, data management, consulting, management, and computer animation. The major asks students to consider the problems computing solves and the consequences it carries. The department encourages several modes of thinking and asks students to reflect on how computing affects the wider world. Learning reaches beyond traditional homework and exams through multi-week projects in upper-level courses, software built for local nonprofit groups, and research with faculty members. Efforts to make computing more inclusive shape both the teaching and the support offered to students. Graduates leave with habits of independent problem-solving that apply well beyond the classroom. The major suits students who want to study computing as a discipline and as a tool for other fields.