Difference between studying Information Technology and Computer engineering?

It's not really two clearly defined separate things. There are a lot of different kinds of work you can do in computers. Some of it falls under what people call "IT", and some does not, and some maybe, depending on how you look at it. "Computer Engineering" is even vaguer - there are different kinds of work that can be described as "computer engineering" that are much more different from each other than some of them are from IT.

It sounds like you're interested in working with computers, but you're not sure what kind of computer work you'll enjoy most. Forget about the meaning of words like "computer engineering" or "information technology" and instead, find and try a variety of things. Once you're actually working with computers - taking classes, doing stuff for fun on your own, joining clubs, and so on - then you'll gradually get a better idea of what the options are and which ones you might want to go into further.

Some examples...

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  Designing processor chips. Working with integrated circuits at a very low level. It's partly physics, partly engineering. You could call that part of "computer engineering."

  
  


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  Programming large software systems with a team of people. Systems that are used by banks, hospitals, airlines, government agencies, and other places like that, to manage their information and do their work - keep track of money, or patient medical records, or taxes owed and paid. You could also call that "computer engineering" since it's often called "software engineering". On the other hand, people sometimes include designing business systems like this within the term "information technology".

  
  


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  Helping people with their computers at their desks. Fixing broken desktop computers, installing software on laptops, making backups and restoring files that people lose. People often call that kind of job "IT support", so it could be called "information technology".

  
  


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  Systems administration. Here you set up email servers and make sure the email flows between companies or schools, protect a network from viruses and other attacks, plan how to upgrade web servers with more capacity before so many people are using them that they can't keep up. That's very different from desktop IT support, but it's also often called "information technology".

  
  


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  Usability testing and user interface design. Figure out how people actually use an app, web site, or software system. What confuses them? Where do they get stuck? What do they wish they could do that they can't... and what do they wish they could do that they actually can but they don't realize it? How can you change the way the app, site, or system works for users to make things better, smoother, less confusing, easier, more convenient?

  
  

These are just a few examples. There are a lot more kinds of things you can do with computers. Don't get too hung up on which ones are being called "IT" or not, or which ones are being called "engineering" or not.

Hey Rijan,

To build a bit on what Brian said, there are many components of IT. There's networking, security, hardware, software, server maintenance, and much more. IT staff generally works closely with a business to determine the technical needs of a company. This can include desktops, laptops, desk phones, cell phones, tablets, servers, software, and even services like email, security, anti-virus, inventory, websites, etc.

I think that both IT and Engineering both have their advantages. What's really awesome about engineering is that you have the ability to actually create something useful that people can see and interact with. It's really cool to create something completely from scratch and that can be really rewarding because you have something physical to show from all your hard work. IT is really rewarding too. You are the expert on how computers, networks, and software all come together to allow a company to function. Most people within the business don't carry this knowledge. Today, companies rely on technology to conduct day-to-day business. A company cannot take or process orders, pay employees, pay vendors, communicate with customers, advertise their services or even track inventory without the help of technology. In IT, you are the person maintaining all of that infrastructure and it can be really rewarding to see how your knowledge helps a business to function.

If you're unsure of what to choose, I would suggest taking a couple classes to see how you like them before declaring a major. For IT you could take a computer networking class and for CE you could maybe take a programming class (Python, HTML, Javascript) to see how you like it. Also, both industries are growing exponentially, so you really can't go wrong!

-Krissy

Hi Rijan,

Those terms refer to slightly different aspects of computing work so I can understand how they might be confusing! Generally, CE focuses on developing new computer software and hardware. CEs might help:
design the hardware processors themselves or other physical components
write computer software like games, web site applications, mobile apps, etc.
build more complicated distributed systems out of these hardware and software components
On the other hand IT usually deals more with managing hardware and software. IT departments help companies:
work with vendors to purchase new hardware and software
maintain corporate systems (like email) over time
provide training and support
* enforce security policies
IT often involves a bit more communication and CE requires a deeper technical understanding.

I enjoying being a CE and have friends who love IT, it just depends on how deeply you want to dive into the technology vs. managing the people and processes themselves.

brian