Quick answer: 6 colleges within 100 miles of Lakeland, Florida award a computer engineering degree, the nearest about 9 miles away (IPEDS Completions, 2024).
Compare computer engineering programs you can start from Lakeland:
| Distance from Lakeland | Colleges awarding this degree |
|---|---|
| Within 25 miles | 1 |
| Within 50 miles | 2 |
| Within 100 miles | 6 |
| Within 250 miles | 13 |
Source: IPEDS Completions, 2024, counting institutions that reported awarding this degree, joined to IPEDS institution coordinates. Distances are straight-line.
Access around Lakeland is thinner than in the larger Florida metros. The nearest college awarding this degree is roughly 9 miles away and 6 sit within 100 miles, which is the case where an online or low-residency program earns its keep.
The subject matter does not change by location: digital logic and computer architecture, embedded systems, circuits, signals, and hardware description languages. What changes is how you take it. Ask each college whether the program holds accreditation from the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, how much of the coursework is delivered online, and which components require you on campus. Credit transfer is decided by the receiving institution and genuinely varies, so request a written transfer evaluation before you enroll.
This page lists 10 schools within 190 miles, closest group first, then ordered by BOC Score with the highest at the top. 10 of them carry a score.
Scores come from IPEDS (2024) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Earnings are for all graduates of a school, not one program, so treat them as a signal about the institution rather than about this subject. Sponsored listings are paid placements and are labelled as such; they are separate from this ranking and never change it. Read the full methodology.
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Computer Hardware Engineers in Florida earn a median $134,160 per year against $161,740 nationally (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
The Florida median for computer hardware engineers is $134,160 per year, below the national median of $161,740, on state employment of 3,290 (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
These are statewide figures. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish wages at city level, so no page can tell you what this job pays in Lakeland specifically. For the metro-level picture where it is published, and the full percentile spread, see the Florida page.
Winter Haven * Saint Cloud * Sebring * Deltona * Ocala * Okeechobee * Palm Coast * Palatka
About this guide: Researched and written by the TradeCareerPath Editorial Team. Our editorial team researches and sources every trade school and career guide using federal labor and education data, including BLS OEWS and Employment Projections, DOL apprenticeship records, IPEDS, College Scorecard, and state licensing boards. We follow the editorial standards documented at /editorial-policy/.
