Best Software Developer programs in Kentucky, ranked by enrollment
Research, design, and develop computer and network software or specialized utility programs.
14 schools in Kentucky run programs that feed this job, graduating 3,040 people a year. The job pays a median of $109,010 in Kentucky across about 7,660 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Kentucky that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
9 programs in Kentucky that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Kentucky (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 Kentucky page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 11.0103In Kentucky → | 1,195 | 39.3% | 7 | $57,986 | $24,286 |
| 2 | CIP 11.0701In Kentucky → | 985 | 32.4% | 9 | $70,374 | $23,250 |
| 3 | CIP 11.0401In Kentucky → | 486 | 16.0% | 4 | $57,313 | $25,833 |
| 4 | CIP 14.0901In Kentucky → | 191 | 6.3% | 4 | $78,333 | $24,098 |
| 5 | CIP 11.0902In Kentucky → | 73 | 2.4% | 1 | $43,901 | $22,822 |
| 6 | CIP 11.0102In Kentucky → | 46 | 1.5% | 3 | $57,986 | $24,286 |
| 7 | CIP 30.7001In Kentucky → | 42 | 1.4% | 4 | — | — |
| 8 | CIP 14.0903In Kentucky → | 13 | 0.4% | 2 | $78,333 | $24,098 |
| 9 | CIP 11.0201In Kentucky → | 9 | 0.3% | 2 | $46,719 | $20,729 |
Top 14 schools in Kentucky
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 6 of the 14 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of the Cumberlands Williamsburg, KY Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 1,355 | Information Technology | $40,725 | 50% | $11,672 | 99% |
| 2 | Campbellsville University Campbellsville, KY Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 883 | Computer Science | — | 42% | $18,824 | 80% |
| 3 | University of Louisville Louisville, KY Public · 3 feeder programs | 228 | Computer Engineering, General | $72,710 | 61% | — | 79% |
| 4 | University of Kentucky Lexington, KY Public · 4 feeder programs | 138 | Information Science/Studies | $49,165 | 71% | — | 93% |
| 5 | Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights, KY Public · 3 feeder programs | 130 | Information Technology | $62,411 | 52% | — | 68% |
| 6 | Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY Public · 3 feeder programs | 106 | Information Technology | $48,863 | 56% | — | 94% |
| 7 | Murray State University Murray, KY Public · 3 feeder programs | 82 | Information Technology | — | 61% | — | 86% |
| 8 | Bellarmine University Louisville, KY Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 28 | Computer Science | — | 64% | $22,542 | 86% |
| 9 | Lindsey Wilson University Columbia, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 26 | Data Science, General | — | 44% | $14,471 | — |
| 10 | American National University - Louisville Louisville, KY Private for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 24 | Computer Engineering, General | — | 50% | $17,427 | — |
| 11 | Centre College Danville, KY Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 21 | Computer Science | — | 81% | $18,407 | 54% |
| 12 | Sullivan University Louisville, KY Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 11 | Computer Programming/Programmer, General | — | 71% | $29,703 | — |
| 13 | Eastern Kentucky University Richmond, KY Public · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Information Technology | $39,867 | 50% | — | 78% |
| 14 | Midway University Midway, KY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Computer Science | — | 41% | $23,658 | 95% |
All 14 schools in Kentucky
Every school in Kentucky 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of the Cumberlands | Williamsburg | Private not-for-profit | 1,355 | 4 |
| Campbellsville University | Campbellsville | Private not-for-profit | 883 | 2 |
| University of Louisville | Louisville | Public | 228 | 3 |
| University of Kentucky | Lexington | Public | 138 | 4 |
| Northern Kentucky University | Highland Heights | Public | 130 | 3 |
| Western Kentucky University | Bowling Green | Public | 106 | 3 |
| Murray State University | Murray | Public | 82 | 3 |
| Bellarmine University | Louisville | Private not-for-profit | 28 | 4 |
| Lindsey Wilson University | Columbia | Private not-for-profit | 26 | 1 |
| American National University - Louisville | Louisville | Private for-profit | 24 | 3 |
| Centre College | Danville | Private not-for-profit | 21 | 2 |
| Sullivan University | Louisville | Private for-profit | 11 | 2 |
| Eastern Kentucky University | Richmond | Public | 4 | 1 |
| Midway University | Midway | Private not-for-profit | 4 | 1 |
What software developers earn in Kentucky
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $135,980. Kentucky pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Kentucky
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 Software Developers page.
How to become a Software Developer
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 Kentucky
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 20 majors mapped to Software Developers20 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 11.0102Artificial Intelligence
- 11.0103Information Technology
- 11.0104Informatics
- 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
- 11.0401Information Science/Studies
- 11.0701Computer Science
- 11.0804Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation
- 11.0902Cloud Computing
- 14.0901Computer Engineering, General
- 14.0903Computer Software Engineering
- 15.1204Computer Software Technology/Technician
- 30.0801Mathematics and Computer Science
- 30.1601Accounting and Computer Science
- 30.3901Economics and Computer Science
- 30.4801Linguistics and Computer Science
- 30.7001Data Science, General
Common questions
Answers for people weighing software developers programs in Kentucky.
What degree do you need to become a Software Developer?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Information Technology, which awarded 1,195 degrees in Kentucky in 2024-25, 39.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Software Developer?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 9 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer Science, Information Science/Studies, Computer Engineering, plus 3 more. Together they graduate about 3,040 people a year in Kentucky.
How much do software developers earn in Kentucky?+
The median is $109,010 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 19.8% below the U.S. median of $135,980. 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 software developers growing?+
BLS projects a +15.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 115,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Kentucky?+
14 institutions in Kentucky reported graduates from at least one of the 9 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 software developers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Developer, Software Engineer, Software Architect, Software Developer among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-1252.
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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