University Computer Specifications

We think you'll be happiest adhering to the New Computer standards (highlighted), but any computer that meets or exceeds the specifications listed below should be sufficient.

All Illinois State students are expected to own a computer that meets the University's minimum hardware and software standards, which are updated annually and published here. Read the Policy on Student Computer Ownership

Software Requirements: Microsoft Office is the standard productivity suite for campus. As a benefit of campus-wide Microsoft licensing, a subscription to Microsoft Office 365 is available to all students at no extra charge. 

Only University-approved anti-virus software should be installed on computers. More information will be provided once you arrive on campus. 

TechZone does not recommend primary computing devices with the Android, Chrome OS, iOS, or Windows RT operating systems.

Some majors have additional technology requirements. Lucky for you, we made a list.

Check your major

Standards for Laptops

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Already Owned

CPU	Intel Celeron Intel Pentium Intel Core AMD Athlon AMD Phenom AMD Sepron AMD Turion
RAM	2 GB
Hard Drive	80 GB
Optical Drive	CD-RW/DVD-ROM (Combo)
Wireless Card	802.11g
Operating System	Windows 7 Windows 8 Windows 10 Mac OS Yosemite Mac OS El Capitan Mac OS Sierra
Video Card	Integrated

New Computer

CPU	Intel m3 Intel m5 Intel m7 Intel i3 Intel i5 AMD A6 AMD A8 AMD A9 AMD A10
RAM	4 GB
Hard Drive	500 GB HDD 128 GB SSD
Optical Drive	DVD+/-RW Drive (Super)
Wireless Card	802.11 g/n*/ac *Dual-band wireless cards (those that support 2.4GHz and 5GHz wireless) are recommended.
Operating System	Windows 10 Mac OS Sierra
Video Card	Integrated

New Advanced

CPU	Intel Core i5 Intel Core i7 AMD A12 AMD FX
RAM	8+ GB
Hard Drive	750+ GB 7200 RPM HDD 256+ GB SSD
Optical Drive	DVD+/-RW Drive (Super) + Blu-Ray
Wireless Card	802.11 g/n*/ac *Dual-band wireless cards (those that support 2.4GHz and 5GHz wireless) are recommended.
Operating System	Windows 10 Mac OS Sierra
Video Card	AMD (Dedicated or discrete) nVidia (Dedicated or discrete)

*Side-by-side comparison is not optimized for mobile browsers

Standards for Desktops

View side-by-side* →

Already Owned

CPU	Intel Celeron Intel Pentium Intel Core AMD Athlon AMD Phenom AMD Sepron
RAM	2 GB
Hard Drive	80 GB
Optical Drive	CD-RW/DVD-ROM (Combo)
Display Size	19"
Operating System	Windows 7 Windows 8 Windows 10 Mac OS Yosemite Mac OS El Capitan Mac OS Sierra
Video Card	Integrated

New Computer

CPU	Intel Core i3 Intel Core i5 AMD A6 AMD A8 AMD A10 AMD Ryzen 5
RAM	4 GB
Hard Drive	500 GB HDD 128 GB SSD
Optical Drive	DVD+/-RW Drive (Super)
Display Size	20"
Operating System	Windows 10 Mac OS Sierra
Video Card	Integrated

New Advanced

CPU	Intel Core i5 Intel Core i7 AMD FX AMD Ryzen 7
RAM	8+ GB
Hard Drive	750+ GB 7200 RPM HDD 256+ GB SSD
Optical Drive	DVD+/-RW Drive (Super) + Blu-Ray
Display Size	24"
Operating System	Windows 10 Mac OS Sierra
Video Card	AMD (Dedicated or discrete) nVidia (Dedicated or discrete)

*Side-by-side comparison is not optimized for mobile browsers