Minimum Technology Requirements
In order to effectively participate in online components of NSM courses, all students in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics must have a computer that meets the minimum technology requirements which are listed below.
Additionally, students must have:
- Internet connection (speeds ≥ 24 Mbps upload/download strongly recommended)
- Integrated or external webcam with microphone
- Headset or Headphones with built-in microphone
- Ability to send scans of paper documents (i.e. using a smart phone with camera or scanner)
Windows Laptop Computer
| Minimum | Recommended | Best |
|---|---|---|
| Intel Core i5 or i7 Quad-Core Processor (11th Generation or Newer, Minimum 1.0GHz) AMD Ryzen 5 or 7 Quad-Core (5000 or 6000 Series Ryzen or Newer, Minimum 1.9GHz) | Intel Core i7 Quad-Core Processor (11th Generation or Newer, Minimum 2.3GHz) AMD Ryzen 5 or 7 Quad-Core (5000 or 6000 Series Ryzen or Newer, Minimum 2.3GHz) | Intel Core i7 Quad-Core Processor (11th Generation or Newer, Minimum 2.9GHz) or Intel i9 Six-Core (11th Generation or Newer, Minimum 2.9GHz) AMD Ryzen 7 or 9 Hexa-core (6000 series Ryzen or Newer, Minimum 2.9GHz) |
| 16GB Memory | 32GB Memory | 32GB Memory |
| 500GB SSD | 500GB SSD | 1TB SSD |
| Integrated or Dedicated Graphics Card | Dedicated Graphics Card (Minimun 2GB GDDR5 or GDDR6) | Dedicated Graphics Card (Minimun 4GB GDDR5 or GDDR6) |
| 13” – 15” Screen (Minimun Resolution 1920 x 1080) | 14” – 15” Screen (Minimun Resolution 1920 x 1080) | 13” or Larger Screen (Minimun Resolution 1920 x 1080) |
| Wireless (IEEE 802.11 (AX, Minimum AC)) | ||
| 4 Year or More Warranty with Support | ||
| 4 Hour Battery Life | ||
Mac Laptop Computer (MacBook Air or MacBook Pro)
| Minimum | Recommended | Best |
|---|---|---|
| M3 (Minimum 8-Core CPU and 10-Core GPU) | M3 (Minimum 8-Core CPU and 10-Core GPU) | M4 (Minimum 10-Core CPU and 10-Core GPU) |
| 16GB Memory | 24GB Memory | 32GB Memory |
| 512GB SSD | 512GB SSD | 1TB SSD |
| 13” – 15” Screen | 14” – 16” Screen | 14” – 16” Screen |
| 4 Year or More Warranty with Support | ||
| 4 Hour Battery Life | ||
NOTE: Devices with ARM processors (example: Microsoft Surface X) should be avoided as some required libraries cannot be installed on them. Tablets running Android, iOS, ChromeOS should also be avoided as they do not currently support all necessary software.