To succeed in today’s learning environment, all Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering students are required to have regular access to a personal laptop or mobile computer. Many engineering courses rely on the use of laptops for coursework, assignments, and collaboration.
Students will be expected to:
- Run course-specific software
- Access digital course materials
- Submit assignments online
- Communicate with peers and faculty electronically
We recommend purchasing a laptop with as much memory and processing power as your budget allows. Your device should be capable of running common engineering software such as MATLAB, AutoCAD, and SolidWorks.
Need software? UF students have access to many programs at little or no cost.
Explore options here:
Minimum Hardware Requirements
These minimum specifications are not necessarily available in new computer configurations currently on the market and are provided as a reference for a minimally configured computer. Some departments may have specific requirements that are more restrictive than these general recommendations.
| Component | Minimum Configuration |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel 12th Gen or higher, xx400 or better (e.g., 12600, 13400, 14800) OR AMD Ryzen 7000 series or better, x300 or better (e.g., 7300, 8700, 9600) |
| Memory | 16GB RAM |
| SSD | 1 TB |
| Video Card | FHD (1920 x 1080); Integrated Graphics |
| Sound Card | Input: Microphone Output: Headphones |
| Mouse / Keyboard | A physical keyboard and pointing device (mouse) is necessary. Students should not rely entirely on a touchscreen device |
| Camera | 720p HD Resolution (1440 x 720) |
| Network Hardware | Wireless (Wi-Fi 5 802.11ac) Network connectivity is required in many classes. Additionally, much of the campus is covered by a campus wireless network |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Pro / Education (Available for free for UF students) Operating systems other than Microsoft Windows are allowed. However, in most cases, a Windows-based operating system will be the best choice since it will be the easiest path towards software compatibility in departmental courses. Mac users will need to be able to run the Windows OS. |
| Backup Hardware | UF students are provided a large amount of storage in both Microsoft OneDrive and Google Drive for cloud backup. |
| Battery | 2hr Minimum Current notebooks run between 1.5 and 5 hours on the included battery. It is suggested that an optional battery (or extended battery) be purchased. |
Recommended Hardware Requirements
| Component | Recommended Configuration |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Series 1 or higher (new line; comes after 14th Generation); 125 or better (e.g., 125H, 134L, 288V) OR AMD Ryzen 8000 Series or better, x500 or better (e.g., 8500, 9600) |
| Memory | 32GB RAM |
| SSD | 2 TB |
| Video Card | QHD (2560 x 1440) or 4K (3840 x 2160); NVIDIA GeForce 4050 OR AMD Radeon RX 6600M |
| Sound Card | Input: Microphone A microphone is required for a variety of online video conferencing and chat applications that are available at UF and used in various ways, including virtual advising and academic instruction. Output: Headphones |
| Mouse / Keyboard | A physical keyboard and pointing device (mouse) are necessary. Students should not rely entirely on a touchscreen device |
| Camera | FHD Resolution (1920 x 1080) |
| Network Hardware | Wireless (Wi-Fi 6 802.11ax) Network connectivity is required in many classes. Additionally, much of the campus is covered by a campus wireless network |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Pro / Education (Available for free for UF students) Operating systems other than Microsoft Windows are allowed. However, in most cases, a Windows based operating system will be the best choice since it will be the easiest path towards software compatibility in departmental courses. Mac users will need to be able to run the Windows OS. |
| Backup Hardware | UF students are provided a large amount of storage in both Microsoft Onedrive and Google Drive for cloud backup. |
| Battery | 8hr minimum |