Resources And Tools For Computer Science Students
Updated April 11, 2023
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Tools, Tech & News for a Career in Computer Science
The continued explosion of applications developed for mobile, combined with near constant technological innovation across the board, has powered the call for more computer science degree holders, researchers, and technicians. Keeping up-to-date and educated on developments and news in the computer science industry isn't just a bonus anymore – it's a must. Here, find links to organizations and associations supporting the education and career advancement of professionals, including job sites, professional journals, continued learning opportunities and career networking.
Groups & Networking
It's impossible to overstate the need for career networking and scholarly participation in professional associations that advocate for the computer science fields. Many societies and associations offer student memberships or they sponsor campus chapters. There's a group for every specialization, along with umbrella organizations that embrace educational and professional advocacy. Moreover, online access by computer or mobile apps to dedicated career-networking organizations in computer science and mathematics can establish instant contact. Many associations host national conferences or regional meetings. By phone or in person, students can make connections with lifelong mentors, or they can build local groups of academically like-minded peers.
Associations & Societies
American Mathematical Society (AMS)
Since 1886, the AMS has advocated in the interests of mathematical research and educational professionals. Each January, the society supports the world's largest meeting of mathematical educators and scholars, and throughout the year, it hosts regional meetings across the U.S.
American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
ASEE is a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of engineering education and program development. Student members receive ASEE publications, discounts at national conferences, local workshops, and online access to job listings, fellowship announcements and research libraries.
Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI)
Founded in 1979, the Association is a non-profit scientific society dedicated to promoting research and ethical application of artificial intelligence. It sponsors conferences, symposia and membership access to publications, a digital library, reports and scholarships.
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Comprised of professional and student coders, theorists, database engineers and developers, ACM offers its members lifelong learning programs, access to research findings and publications, local member groups, conferences and workshops.
Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T)
For 75 years this organization of technology professionals has conducted annual conferences and meetings, created webinars and extensive career resources for students.
Association for Information Systems (AIS)
The association represents educators, technologists, engineers, and researchers in the IS professions. Its website hosts information on its conferences, research resources and libraries, educational and job placement assistance programs.
Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP)
Founded in 1951, AITP has represented technology professionals and students. Members gain access to webinars, job-search resources, and networking activities through national and local chapters. Students can join AITP for $30 a year.
The Computing Research Association (CRA)
The CRA's goal is to unite the common interests among the computer industry, academia and governmental organizations. Members have access to a jobs board, data sources, scholarly publications, conferences and best-practice resources.
International Association of Computer Science and Information Technology (IACSIT)
IACSIT is an organization of scholars, research scientists, engineers, developers and undergraduate/postgraduate engineering and technology students. Member benefits include conferences, workshops and participation in a wide spectrum of societies focused on career specializations.
Women in Technology International (WITI)
An outgrowth of a small group of women IT professionals that met at Sun Microsystems, WITI today is a global network of more than 2 million women. Members receive more than 30 professional development webinars a year, mentorship opportunities and discounts on partner-hosted online classes.
Connections & Networking
Advancing Your Career with Social Network Sites
Monster.com's article covers the strategies and benefits of using social networking sites/programs. Learn how to build and maintain a network.
Association for Women in Computing
Women computer science majors and professionals that join AWC benefit from mentoring and career networking, job listings, publications, national and local seminars on career growth in the computing industries.
Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA)
BGPA is an international non-profit organization of African-American students and professionals in information technology and computer science. Members are part of a wide network of professionals with careers in commercial, academic, non-profit and governmental sectors of the economy.
The features in Google+ Circles allow job seekers and recruiters to create professional networks district from ones for family members and friends. Users can search for contacts of peers, employers or recruiters based on IT specialty.
Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA)
ISACA's IT Professional Networking and Knowledge Center – available for members – links students and professionals based on expertise in over 100 IT topics including applications, databases, mobile, operating systems, security and standards.
The world's preeminent career networking site is the meeting place for 36 million job seekers, recruiters, and business organizations. Computer science students and professionals can boost their brand or professional footprint through posting and cultivating a network by joining IT-related groups.
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Members can search for existing IT-related groups or begin their own social networking group based on their computer science interests. Groups meet nationally, regionally, or locally and share activities. For example, there's a Python programmers group in Seattle.
Social and career networking sites are the latest tools for job seekers and employers
CareerOneStop (the U.S. Department of Labor) has a list of career networking URLs, along with the protocol for using social networking and electronic mailing lists to build career contacts.
Twitter posts when coupled with student/professional networking pages (LinkedIn, Facebook) can blast applications, portfolios, and resumes to hiring managers and recruiters.
Academics & Research
Computer science master's programs often give students two degree-track options: one requiring completion of a formal thesis, and one requiring completion of comprehensive examinations in lieu of a thesis. Doctoral computer science candidates will almost certainly find that a dissertation is part of their degree program. Regardless of degree level or program, computer science grad students should expect to encounter the need to conduct research into specific topics in their chosen major during the course of their graduate academic careers. The resources linked below are offered to help computer science grad students in carrying out academic research.
| Website | Description |
| 1. Cheat-Sheets.org | This amazingly comprehensive site gives students access to dozens of cheat sheets, round-ups, quick reference cards and guides for practically every need a computer scientist, student or engineer could ever have. |
| 2. Cogprints | Cogprints is an electronic archive for self-archived papers in a number of academic disciplines, including computer science. Specific topics include artificial intelligence, human computer interaction, robotics, machine learning, complexity theory, and others. |
| 3. Computing Research Association (CRA) | The CRA offers support to all facets of computing research. Resources available at this site include computing research news, information on scholarly publications and reports concerning research, funding and infrastructure. |
| 4. Computing Research Repository – Cornell University | A free resource that allows individuals to browse, search and download computer science-related research papers from the archives of the Cornell University Library. |
| 5. Dictionary of Algorithms and Data Structures | Hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This exhaustive dictionary includes definitions of algorithms, algorithmic techniques, data structures, archetypal problems, and other related terms. |
| 6. Free Online Computer Science Journals | List of and links to free online computer science academic journals as provided by the Sacramento State University Library. |
| 7. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Editorial Style Manual | Similar to the Chicago Style Manual for journalists and writers, the IEEE Editorial Style Manual is used by many colleges and university computer science degree programs as the standard reference for proper form and format of science-related academic papers. |
| 8. Martindale's Calculators On-Line Center | Literally dozens of science-related calculators, applets and spreadsheets for computer engineers and scientists. Also included are applicable courses, manuals, simulations, animations and more. |
| 9. National Science Foundation Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering (CISE) | This NSA site supports investigator-initiated research in computer and information science and engineering, and helps develop and maintain cutting-edge national computing and information infrastructure for research and education, among other tasks. |
| 10. The Stony Brook Algorithm Repository | A comprehensive collection of algorithm implementations for over seventy fundamental problems in combinatorial algorithms. Accessible by language and problem, and provides links to algorithm lectures and more. |
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Industry News & Scholarship
There's an old saying that once you've learned something, it's obsolete. CS students can be buried in books or lab work while the industry evolves around them. Professional magazines, trade journals and scholarly publications are potent resources for industry news, research findings, IT pop culture, technology trends and insider tips.
News & Trends
A publication of the IEEE Computer Society, CN publishes online articles for software programmers, developers, and technicians. Sections include trends, news, blogs, theoretical and practical articles.
The magazine's technology vertical publishes digital articles and multimedia related to the gamut of technology and trends, from smartphone manufacturing to liquid 3D printing.
An edgy, online publication publishes tech news and trends. Recent article topics included Tesla's autopilot technology, hoverboards, drones, VR environments, cordless home security systems, and biologically powered computer chips.
Available to members of the IEEE Communications Society, the magazine covers trends in development, marketing, technology and policies related to digital communications.
InfoWorld hosts online articles, multimedia and infographics for general use and serves up premium content for paid members. Recent topics included a review of Google Cloud, an exploration of bad programming habits, and feature stories on analytics, application development, databases, software and mobile technology.
Students and professionals pursuing cool tech, phones and gadgets will find Mobile's news and features on communications rules, apps, company acquisitions, and employment trends.
An online magazine dedicated to broadening public understanding of science and new developments. Quanta recently published articles on Big Data mathematics, string theory, record-breaking algorithms and physics theory.
A source of tech news, information on new software, mobile technology, and social media, Unleashed has reviews and download links to free apps for PC and Mac platforms.
Wired's Science section is home to ongoing articles on computer industry trends and the global landscape of technology innovation, design and deployment.
An online publication, TNW highlights news and feature articles on IT, mobile technology and security with a software buyer's guide, blogs, and special sections on Linux, eCommerce, CRM, emerging tech, data management, and leadership.
Scholarships & Journals
The Chicago Journal of Theoretical Computer Science
Hosted by the University of Chicago, this peer-reviewed online journal publishes scholarly articles in theoretical computer science.
The journal has a publication focus on theory and methodology across all academic aspects of the computer science community. Recent papers have centered on computational intelligence, network security, computer science tools and machine learning.
IBM Journal of Research and Development
The first IBM Journal of Research and Development was published in 1957. Today, the journal is available online. Recent topics included mentoring, circuit design and methodology, and the Big Data approach to analytics.
International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications
Published by Britain's Science and Information (SAI) Organization, the international journal hosts scholarly articles and papers on state-of-the-art research in CS/application methodologies.
The Journal of Machine Learning Research (JMLR)
The JMLR publishes scholarly articles and research findings in all machine learning content areas. Topics include experimental studies and new learning tasks, analytical frameworks, performance evaluation and measurement.
The Journal of Statistical Software
The journal, published by the Foundation for Open Access Statistics, features articles, literature reviews, source code and code snippets that help developers put statistical theory into applied practice.
Logical Methods in Computer Science
This open-access, refereed journal publishes theoretical and practice papers, survey articles, and special issues on methods, logic, database theory, algorithms, program analysis, security, finite model theory and proof complexity.
Information Week's infrastructure publication offers continuing online articles and expert analysis on topics including networking, wireless, data center, security, unified communications, applications and the cloud.
Science of Computer Programming (SCP)
SCP publishes papers on experimental software technology, methodology, concepts, descriptive software technology and formal techniques. Topics cover the entire lifecycle of software systems.
This online journal has recently published original papers on the topics of database theory, new distributed, distance-vector algorithms, fixed-point problems, and the existential theory of the real numbers.
Internships
If BLS job growth predictions hold, there will be openings for today's computer science students if they focus on high-growth specializations such as database and software development fields. Those first entering a CS degree program may be looking at help-desk or website building jobs, while graduate students may be aiming toward director or managerial roles. Mega-job sites, networking organizations, and job sites dedicated to technology jobs can help students locate the right role matching the stage of their career, specialty and expertise. There's also a wealth of volunteer or paid internship opportunities in the financial and technology sectors that build expertise, experience, and lasting career connections.
| Internships | Description |
| 1. Apple Computers | The makers of the Mac, iPhone, iPad and iTunes offers summer internships as well as part-time semester jobs – most located in Silicon Valley. Recent internships were in UI and software engineering, iTunes user experience, data analysis, and RF/wireless. |
| 2. Boeing | Aircraft and aerospace giant Boeing offers 1,800 U.S. and overseas-based internships for bachelor and master's degree students. Each internship runs for 12 weeks. |
| 3.DreamCareers | A for-profit internship match service, DreamCareers offers to find the right tech internship or refund the application fee. Current guaranteed technology internships are located in Boston, Barcelona, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Costa Rica, London and Hong Kong. |
| 4. Glassdoor | Students can apply for one of 12,000 current internships through Glassdoor or follow its aggregated links to company postings for computer science interns across the country. Recent undergrad and grad-level internships in software were listed by Facebook, ARRIS, Silicon Labs, Lyft, Sony Playstation, and A10 Networks. |
| 5. Google | The international search leader currently offers product management and technical internships located in the U.S. or internationally. Locations for recent software engineering internships included Silicon Valley, Brazil, Japan, China, Taiwan, Australia, Israel, Mexico and Ireland. |
| 6. Indeed | One of the world's largest job and career sites, Indeed currently lists more than 1,000 computer science internships announced by employers. Recent tech internships were posted by Walmart eCommerce, Intel, Dreamworks Animation, Fitbit, JC Penney, CDK Global, and Intuit. |
| 7.Internships.com | Students seeking internships will find available listings anywhere in the country, especially in tech hubs and data centers in places like Austin, Northern California, Los Angeles, New York City, and Chicago. Some 700 recent internships were in fields of software testing and QA, Java training, .Net, iOs development, web design, data analysis, and SEO. |
| 8. LinkedIn | Career-networking site LinkedIn maintains a technology internship service, featuring some 4,000 opportunities with employers such as Polaris Industries, CAN Insurance, Proctor & Gamble, Mutual of Omaha, NBC Universal Media, American Express, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Make-A-Wish America, IBM, Google and Groupon. |
| 9. LookSharp | Approximately 30,000 employers recruit interns from LookSharp listings and postings. Recent employers include Rocket Software, JAMF Software, Tableau Software, ACGI Software, Smith Micro Software, Weebly, and Cimarron Software Service. |
| 10. Microsoft | The Explore Microsoft program offers a 12-week summer internship to freshman and sophomore college students, providing rotations through different engineering roles on current projects in development. Students do not have to be declared computer science majors to apply. |
Apps, Tools & Tech in Computer Science
There seems no end to apps and online tech tools created for computer science students, teachers and professionals. Some are free for the taking. Some organizations charge for downloads or website access. There's a treasure trove of apps designed across all mobile platforms for studying, communicating and conducting research. There are apps to assist students writing code, uploading and compiling, or for taking notes and capturing research (text, multimedia, spreadsheets). Those working on projects will appreciate open-source software (grab the code you need), middleware and presentation tools.
Apps for Computer Science
Computer students can replace the calculators that came with their devices with this app that lets users tailor their regular and scientific calculator functions for their research needs. Free for androids.
Designed for people programming on an Apple device, this app runs code in more than 23 languages without having to use repetitive code. Users can install their own syntaxes.
A compiler/uploader created for android phones, CppDroid is designed to help students learn to program C and C++.
Wondershare has developed the first iPhone and iPad Data Recovery Software that can recover deleted class notes, photos, text files and contacts for iPhone, iPad and iPod devices. It is also compatible with Windows 10 and iTunes 12.
The basic (free) app from Evernote is a movable workspace for Windows. It grabs notes, task lists and content copied from the web and synchs it between computers and smart devices.
This application by Apple creates dynamic visual presentations using a toolset that builds slides, multimedia images, charts and posts working and finished projects to the web. Files can be saved in Powerpoint formats for Microsoft users.
Microsoft's presentation software was first created in 1990 and has evolved into one of the most commonly used slide and cinematic presentation programs in the marketplace.
Tasker is designed for computer students who want to automate tasks on their mobile phones. It's useful for tweaking phone settings and app launchers to tailor the phone to tasks and environments.
Developed by a renowned computer scientist, Alpha is a knowledge engine, dedicated search engine and scientific computational toolkit for Apple users.
Tools & Tech for Computer Science
When users type in a URL, Bounce goes out and captures a screen shot of the web page. The grab can be shared with others collaborating on assignments.
Mobile app designers and developers can accelerate the time it takes to design and complete HTML5 mobile apps using a web-based, drag-and-drop interface that builds code in the background.
Dictionary of Algorithms and Data Structures
Hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, this free online dictionary contains definitions for algorithms, data structures and archetypal problems.
An online collaboration tool, is free for researchers working on open source projects and, for a fee, private codes. Tools include issue tracking and the use of more than 35 million code repositories.
Cloud-based Heroku claims to slice through the clutter of infrastructure, helping developers design, build and scale apps without smacking into common roadblocks in servers and hardware.
This free online compiling and code debugging tool takes inputted source code or template and execute it across over 60 unique programming languages.
This online tool allows anyone to create automated handshakes between 258 multiple platforms, programs and resources. For example, one IFTTT recipe will send a photo to Instagram and upload it to cloud storage with a single command.
Website will upload spreadsheets or tab-delimited data and convert it to HTML, XML, CSV and JSON for no charge.
Browser add-ons and apps iPhone & iPad, and Android devices convert ugly, unreadable web pages into reader-friendly versions. Readability APIs are free for use by developers.
Part collaboration tool, part visual bug tracker, Usersnap provides in-page bug reporting using standard browsers. Bug reports are sent to selected team members.
Education & Skill Development
Code writers, system architects, data drillers, web designers and mobile app developers scurry to keep up with emerging theory, research and workplace methodology. Fortunately, an abundant resource of free or paid courses from major schools and software manufacturers is available online, alongside certificate preparation programs and free, massive open online courses (MOOCs) from prominent colleges and universities. Professional computer science associations hold national conferences and local workshops/seminars to help specialists build their toolbox of advanced skills. Some science websites allow students and professionals to submit code for testing, with results compiled into an educational database. Find these and more, below.
- Class Central
The aggregator of online courses and credential preparation programs rounds up a listing of more than 450 free MOOC classes for the taking. Classes come from major colleges and university departments of computer science and engineering.
- Coderwall
Join more than 6,000 coding teams sharing professional tips, tutorials, code snippets and information on new technologies. Users build a community using social media sources such as LinkedIn, Twitter and GitHub. - ComputerScienceOnline
Visitors can review a deep roundup of free MOOC courses in computer science with specialties in engineering, forensics, networking, programming and cyber security. Includes course descriptions and links to the programs. - Coursera
Coursera partners with major universities to offer online self-paced courses in software development, mobile and web development, algorithms, computer and network security, and product design and development. Financial aid is available. - edX
edX was founded in 2012 by Harvard University and MIT to offer MOOC courses from 85 global partners. The site currently lists nearly 150 courses in computer science, including Intro to Python and Introduction to Management Information Systems (MIS): A Survival Guide. - Grok Learning
Students of all ages (from K-12 onward) pay $30 per course for Grok Learning's introductory courses in Python programming, HTML/CSS, and image manipulation. - Harvard Extension Opening Learning Initiative
Students considering a major in computer science can join a free online Intensive Introduction to Computer Science course covering topics in algorithms, data structures, software development, architecture, compilers, cryptography, and programming languages. - IT eBooks
Before plunking down a fortune on textbooks for a computer course, students should check out the titles at this site made available for free download. General and vendor specific guides are available. - iTunes University
Apple's online university offers courses for download or podcast streaming in technology and computer science. For example, users can stream Harvard University's Computer Science 50: Introduction to Computer Science. - Khan Academy
Free courses on computers and technology bring students up to speed at the Academy. Subjects include animation, HTML/CSS, SQL, advanced JavaScript, game programming and simulations. - LearnersTV
Watch video lectures or courses in totality for free at LearnersTV. Hundreds of lectures are available at a click on topics including systems analysis and design, data structures and algorithms, C++ programming, game development, multicore programming, Javascript, and object-oriented programming. - Lynda.com
This popular for-profit online education company – now owned by LinkedIn – provides members with unlimited access to video tutorials and classes offered by experts in the technology fields. Computer science courses are available for developers, designers, web programmers, video production, and business. Free trial offered. - MIT OpenCourseware
The OpenCourseware site shares materials from Massachusetts Institute of Technologies classes in computers and technology. A recent graduate-level offering was “Algorithmic Lower Bounds: Fun with Hardness Proofs”. - Open Culture
A source of free online computer sciences classes, Open Culture provides video and audio courses for download or streaming. Recent titles include Introduction to Robotics, Data Structures and Algorithms, Performance Engineering of Software Systems, and Programming Languages and Compilers. Courses are led by professors from major universities. - Oracle University
Software giant Oracle provides self-paced courses for students and teachers in creating programs using basic Java programming. Students use Alice, a Java development environment created at Carnegie Mellon. - The Paper Trail
Students of computer systems, distributed algorithms and databases can draw from this listing of advanced online lectures and selected readings at Cornell, Princeton, Stanford, Harvard, MIT, and the University of Illinois. Visitors post links to other key courses. - StudyBlue
This online, crowd-sourced learning platform for students allows them to upload class materials and create digital flashcards for sharing among classroom peers across computers, tablets and phones. Resources include notes, tests and learning materials arranged by class topic. - Tech.co
This tech site has listings of 60 free online computer science courses from institutions including UC Berkeley, Harvard, Stanford, Carnegie Mellon, Princeton, Penn Engineering and others. Topics include programming languages, algorithms, systems, and CS theory. - Tickle
Students learn how to program drones, devices, robots, puzzles, games and connected toys using Tickle. The developer sponsors contests and offers free tutorials. - Udacity
Founded by Stanford technologists, it offers nanodegree courses based on video lectures. Its free Intro to Computer Science course teaches students how to program in Python, to build their own search engines, and create digital social networks.
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