If you pursue a associate degree in computer information systems, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #15 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 57 schools in the Southeast Region to determine which ones were the best for computer information systems students pursuing a associate degree. Combined, these schools handed out 3,983 associate degrees in computer information systems to qualified students.
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Choosing a Great Computer Information Systems School for Your Associate Degree
The cis associate degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
A Great Overall School
The overall quality of a associate degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Early-Career Earnings
Average early-career salary of those graduating with their associate degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. That is, everyone wants their associate degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to computer information systems students as compared to other majors.
Major Demand - The number of computer information systems students who choose to seek a associate degree at the school.
Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
Student Debt - How much debt computer information systems students go into to obtain their associate degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized computer information systems related body.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for computer information systems students working on their associate degree.
The cis school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Computer Information Systems Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region.
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Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Computer Information Systems in the Southeast Region
Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for computer information systems students seeking a an associate degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
11 Top Southeast Region Schools for an Associate in CIS
Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale is one of the finest schools in the country for getting an associate degree in computer information systems. Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Fort Lauderdale.
Associate students who receive their degree from the cis program make around $35,883 in the first couple years of working.
Northern Virginia Community College is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting an associate degree in computer information systems. Located in the large suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Computer Information Systems associate degree recipients from Northern Virginia Community College earn a boost of about $2,695 above the typical earnings of computer information systems majors.
Wake Technical Community College is a great decision for individuals pursuing an associate degree in computer information systems. Located in the large suburb of Raleigh, Wake Technical Community College is a public college with a very large student population.
Associate recipients from the computer information systems major at Wake Technical Community College earn $11,296 above the standard graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
Every student who is interested in an associate degree in computer information systems needs to look into Valencia College. Located in the city of Orlando, Valencia College is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Soon after graduating, cis associate recipients usually make about $31,754 in their early careers.
Located in the large city of Durham, Durham Technical Community College is a public college with a small student population.
Those computer information systems students who get their associate degree from Durham Technical Community College make $8,863 more than the average cis graduate.
Located in the large suburb of Florence, Gateway is a public college with a small student population.
Those computer information systems students who get their associate degree from Gateway Community and Technical College receive $12,769 more than the standard cis graduate.
Central Piedmont Community College is a fairly large public college located in the large city of Charlotte.
Those computer information systems students who get their associate degree from Central Piedmont Community College make $3,870 more than the average cis grad.
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Additional Noteworthy Schools
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Computer Information Systems Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region award.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.