Best Computer Programmer programs in Kansas, ranked by enrollment
Create, modify, and test the code and scripts that allow computer applications to run. Work from specifications drawn up by software and web developers or other individuals.
22 schools in Kansas run programs that feed this job, graduating 591 people a year. The job pays a median of $92,960 in Kansas across about 460 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Kansas that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
8 programs in Kansas that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Kansas (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Kansas page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 11.0701In Kansas → | 238 | 40.3% | 12 | $70,374 | $23,250 |
| 2 | CIP 52.1201In Kansas → | 156 | 26.4% | 9 | $59,352 | $24,618 |
| 3 | Computer Programming/Programmer, Generalmain feeder CIP 11.0201In Kansas → | 152 | 25.7% | 5 | $46,719 | $20,729 |
| 4 | CIP 11.0902In Kansas → | 27 | 4.6% | 1 | $43,901 | $22,822 |
| 5 | CIP 51.0709In Kansas → | 7 | 1.2% | 1 | $30,774 | $17,375 |
| 6 | CIP 11.0804In Kansas → | 5 | 0.8% | 1 | $33,504 | $27,000 |
| 7 | CIP 30.7101In Kansas → | 4 | 0.7% | 2 | — | — |
| 8 | Computer Programming, Specific Platformsmain feeder CIP 11.0205In Kansas → | 2 | 0.3% | 1 | $46,719 | $20,729 |
Top 22 schools in Kansas
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 4 of the 22 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fort Hays State University Hays, KS Public · 2 feeder programs | 181 | Management Information Systems, General | $55,111 | 48% | — | 90% |
| 2 | Wichita State University Wichita, KS Public · 2 feeder programs | 153 | Computer Science | $64,699 | 51% | — | 94% |
| 3 | Johnson County Community College Overland Park, KS Public · 2 feeder programs | 51 | Computer Programming/Programmer, General | — | 31% | — | — |
| 4 | Southwestern College Winfield, KS Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 39 | Computer Science | — | 36% | $26,868 | 76% |
| 5 | Fort Hays State University - Northwest Kansas Technical College Goodland, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 27 | Cloud Computing | — | 73% | — | — |
| 6 | Kansas State University Manhattan, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 24 | Management Information Systems, General | $60,144 | 71% | — | 82% |
| 7 | University of Kansas Lawrence, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 21 | Management Information Systems, General | $60,931 | 69% | — | 93% |
| 8 | Butler Community College El Dorado, KS Public · 3 feeder programs | 20 | Computer Science | — | 32% | — | — |
| 9 | Benedictine College Atchison, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Computer Science | — | 62% | $24,826 | 98% |
| 10 | Flint Hills Technical College Emporia, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Computer Programming/Programmer, General | — | 68% | — | — |
| 11 | Pittsburg State University Pittsburg, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Computer Science | — | 57% | — | 89% |
| 12 | Ottawa University - Ottawa Ottawa, KS Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 8 | Computer Science | — | 28% | $26,935 | 83% |
| 13 | Baker University Baldwin City, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Computer Science | — | 58% | $21,404 | 94% |
| 14 | Emporia State University Emporia, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Management Information Systems, General | — | 56% | — | 98% |
| 15 | Independence Community College Independence, KS Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Computer Science | — | 26% | — | — |
| 16 | MidAmerica Nazarene University Olathe, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Computer Science | — | 54% | $28,845 | 79% |
| 17 | Ottawa University - Kansas City Overland Park, KS Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 3 | Management Information Systems, General | — | — | — | — |
| 18 | Ottawa University - Online Overland Park, KS Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 3 | Computer Science | — | 43% | — | — |
| 19 | Bethel College - North Newton North Newton, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Computer Programming, Specific Platforms | — | 41% | $23,560 | 94% |
| 20 | Friends University Wichita, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Computer Science | — | 43% | $24,084 | 55% |
| 21 | Newman University Wichita, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Management Information Systems, General | — | 53% | $18,520 | 74% |
| 22 | Tabor College Hillsboro, KS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Data Analytics, General | — | 34% | $20,022 | 65% |
All 22 schools in Kansas
Every school in Kansas with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Hays State University | Hays | Public | 181 | 2 |
| Wichita State University | Wichita | Public | 153 | 2 |
| Johnson County Community College | Overland Park | Public | 51 | 2 |
| Southwestern College | Winfield | Private not-for-profit | 39 | 3 |
| Fort Hays State University - Northwest Kansas Technical College | Goodland | Public | 27 | 1 |
| Kansas State University | Manhattan | Public | 24 | 1 |
| University of Kansas | Lawrence | Public | 21 | 1 |
| Butler Community College | El Dorado | Public | 20 | 3 |
| Benedictine College | Atchison | Private not-for-profit | 16 | 1 |
| Flint Hills Technical College | Emporia | Public | 15 | 1 |
| Pittsburg State University | Pittsburg | Public | 11 | 1 |
| Ottawa University - Ottawa | Ottawa | Private not-for-profit | 8 | 2 |
| Baker University | Baldwin City | Private not-for-profit | 5 | 1 |
| Emporia State University | Emporia | Public | 3 | 1 |
| Independence Community College | Independence | Public | 3 | 1 |
What computer programmers earn in Kansas
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $100,390. Kansas pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Kansas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Computer Programmers page.
How to become a Computer Programmer
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Kansas
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 17 majors mapped to Computer Programmers17 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 11.0201Computer Programming/Programmer, General
- 11.0202Computer Programming, Specific Applications
- 11.0203Computer Programming, Vendor/Product Certification
- 11.0204Computer Game Programming
- 11.0205Computer Programming, Specific Platforms
- 11.0299Computer Programming, Other
- 11.0701Computer Science
- 11.0803Computer Graphics
- 11.0804Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation
- 11.0902Cloud Computing
- 15.1204Computer Software Technology/Technician
- 30.3001Computational Science
- 30.7101Data Analytics, General
- 30.7103Data Visualization
- 30.7199Data Analytics, Other
- 51.0709Medical Office Computer Specialist/Assistant
- 52.1201Management Information Systems, General
Common questions
Answers for people weighing computer programmers programs in Kansas.
What degree do you need to become a Computer Programmer?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Computer Science, which awarded 238 degrees in Kansas in 2024-25, 40.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Computer Programmer?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 8 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer Science, Management Information Systems and Services, Computer Programming, Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications, plus 3 more. Together they graduate about 591 people a year in Kansas.
How much do computer programmers earn in Kansas?+
The median is $92,960 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 7.4% below the U.S. median of $100,390. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for computer programmers growing?+
BLS projects a -6.0% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 5,500 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Kansas?+
22 institutions in Kansas reported graduates from at least one of the 8 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do computer programmers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Programmer, Analyst Programmer, Programmer Analyst, Computer Programmer among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-1251.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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