Hardware

We have several computer labs on campus with both Windows and macOS machines. Click here to view a list of computer labs and installed software.

Full time faculty and staff are issued a computer by IT and are given a choice between a Mac or Windows machine (please bear in mind that not all requests can be immediately accommodated). Faculty are strongly recommended to choose a laptop configuration as it makes taking teaching materials to classes much easier.

The short answer is "get what you are most comfortable with!" Unless you know that you will need some specific software that will only run on specific hardware or a specific operating system, it's very hard to go wrong.

For PCs, a current generation Intel Core i5 or AMD Ryzen 5 is a good balance between computing power and value for a computer's CPU. For Macs, the current generation Apple Silicon chips perform well for most basic tasks. More powerful Pro and Max versions of these chips are available but are likely overkill for most users.

Given that laptop designs are lending themselves to be non-upgradeable more and more, we recommend getting at 16 GB of memory (RAM). This will make sure your computer is more versatile as memory requirements for software increase. Storage may also not be upgradeable so you may want to opt for more. If you largely do browser-based activities such as Google Docs, streaming Netflix, etc, then 256GB of onboard storage may be enough for you. Otherwise, you may want to opt for at least 512 GB.

While some students do bring desktop computers to campus, the majority of students bring a laptop.  

Southwestern students are eligible for education discounts from several vendors. Below are links to both Dell and Apple's respective Education Stores.

Dell Education Store

Apple Education Store

For faculty and staff, IT can get your computer repaired or replaced as long as it is under the manufacturer warranty. Any out of warranty repairs or repairs for physical damage will have to be done at your department's expense. If possible, IT will help to migrate your user data to a different machine in order to minimize downtime.

While IT cannot repair students' personal computers, we can help troubleshoot and provide a best path forward. There are several local repair options that are available and temporary machines are available to check out from the library.

In either case, if you have questions or concerns, or need advice on how to proceed, please contact the Tech Deck.