From the ACM Computing Curricula 2005 report:

Computer science spans a wide range, from its theoretical and algorithmic foundations to cutting-edge developments in robotics, computer vision, intelligent systems, bioinformatics, and other exciting areas. We can think of the work of computer scientists as falling into three categories:

• They develop effective ways to solve computing problems. For example, computer scientists develop the best possible ways to store information in databases, send data over networks, and display complex images. Their theoretical background allows them to determine the best performance possible, and their study of algorithms lets them develop new problem-solving approaches that provide better performance.
• They devise new ways to use computers. Progress in the CS areas of networking, database, and human-computer-interface came together as the world-wide-web, which changed the world. Now, researchers are working to make robots be practical aides and even demonstrate intelligence, databases create new knowledge and, in general, use computers to do new things.
• They design and implement software. Computer scientists take on challenging programming jobs. They also supervise other programmers, keeping them aware of new approaches.

Computer science spans the range from theory to programming. Other disciplines can produce graduates better prepared for specific jobs, while computer science offers a comprehensive foundation that permits graduates to adapt to new technologies and new ideas.