You will need a laptop, mouse, and external hard drive.

You will not need to rush and purchase a laptop before school/your first semester as an Interior Architecture student. You will probably want one by your second semester when you take IA 204. The best way to begin your search visit the Autodesk website and view the system requirements for Revit Architecture 2026.

Try to meet the “Performance” or “Value” minimum requirements as your best bet for long-term life of the laptop over your coming years in the IA program and beyond.

Next, you can cross-reference these requirements with the system requirements for SketchUp Studio (Pro). Again, meet the best performance requirements you can do within your budget.

We strongly recommend that students purchase Windows-based machines over Mac as the Revit and AutoCAD Architecture drafting software is ONLY able to operate in a Windows operating system. (Some students prefer to use Macs but that gets into more complications because you still need to install the Windows operating system on the Mac to run that software. It’s possible, but a headache, and probably causes more hassle than it’s worth. It’s also the more expensive route to go.)

We don’t make specific recommendations for a particular brand of laptop because there are so many options and variables out there. We suggest going to a website for a manufacturer, such as HP, Dell, etc. and following links to find student discounts or laptops for educational purposes (usually where student discounts can be applied) and then customizing a laptop build to meet the system requirements you will need. This will give you a baseline for knowing how much you are likely to spend. Then, you could try to find the laptop somewhere else like Best Buy (but usually you aren’t going to find exactly what you need by making a purchase off the shelf like that.) It is best to order online and specify what you want with a custom build.

ALSO….very important to also get a comfortable mouse! You will need this for drafting. Don’t skip this.

We also recommend students purchase an external hard drive so they can back-up work and large files you will accumulate as a result of using the software that IA students use.

Meet Your Faculty and Staff

Our faculty members work professionally as artists, art directors, graphic and environmental designers, interior designers, curators, consultants, videographers, communication experts, educators and scholars. Their commitment to student success and great range of knowledge supports exceptional student learning experiences.

upcoming cofac events

The College of Fine Arts and Communication offers more than 500 events open to the public each academic year! These include dance, music, and theater performances, master classes, guest artists, gallery exhibitions, SPTV broadcasts, WWSP radio programs, media and video productions among many other student-created pieces.

While the academic year has concluded, we have an exciting summer ahead! Watch our website for the 2026-27 theatre and dance season announcement, free public concerts during the American Suzuki Institute this July, Carlsten Gallery exhibits and more!

programs in the school of design and communication