What Technologies Do I Need to Be Successful in Online or Blended Courses?

James Madison University wants all students taking an online or blended course to be successful. To facilitate your success, there are certain technologies you need to have ready access to, such as a personal computer and software appropriate to the courses you are taking and your field of study. Students can meet this expectation by purchasing or leasing a computer, using a computer lab on campus, or sharing a computer with a roommate or family member. A tablet or hand-held device may provide you with access to your course in Canvas, but may not enable you to produce the sorts of documents or multimedia files you may need to produce in your courses. You will also need to have reliable access to the Internet with good download and upload speeds, at least 512 kbps.

Hardware Recommendations

The JMU Bookstore's Madison Cyberzone provides a regularly updated list of recommendations for hardware, organized by major or intended major. Go to https://www.jmu.edu/bookstore/computers/recommendations.shtml  to determine if you need an upgrade. 

Software Recommendations

JMU's Information Technology Services provides a regularly updated list of recommended software for both JMU-owned computers and personally-owned computers. Go to https://www.jmu.edu/computing/software/recommended-software.shtml and scroll down to section entitled Personally-Owned Computers.

For a list of software available to JMU students free of charge, go to https://www.jmu.edu/computing/software/students-available-software.shtml.