RISD Student Laptop Program - Hardware and Software Requirements
Modified on: Fri, May 16 2025 1:21 PM2025-2026 Hardware and Software Requirements
The hardware and software requirements are evaluated annually and recommended by faculty, Department Heads, the administration of the participating Academic Departments, and RISD’s Information Technology Services (ITS). Any questions regarding the selection of hardware and software chosen to support the academic program should be directed to the appropriate Head of the Department.
Participating Departments:
Apparel (APPAR), Architecture (ARCH), Digital + Media (D+M), Experimental and Foundation Studies (EFS), Film Animation Video (FAV), Furniture Design (FURN), Graphic Design (GD), Industrial Design (ID), Illustration (ILLUS), Interior Architecture (INTAR), Jewelry + Metalsmithing (J+M), Landscape Architecture (LDAR), Photography (PHOTO), and Textiles (TEXT).
When to purchase
To ensure you are prepared for class with the latest and greatest hardware and software releases it is recommended you wait until at least July 2025 (or up to three weeks before the start of your first class) to make your purchases. To allow yourself enough time to verify proper software installation, please be sure to install all software at least one to two weeks prior to the start of the class requiring the software.
Note: Students starting during the on-campus summer program are required to have their laptop and software suite for summer program coursework. This includes the following programs: INTAR MDes Graduate, ARCH and LDAR 2 Year Students. INTAR highly recommends a Windows Laptop. Apple MacBook Pros can run some software, but can’t do VR presently
Choosing your Hardware
Each department has a recommended system specification. Several participating departments (ARCH, ID, ILLUS, INTAR, and LDAR ) use software that only runs in a Windows environment. It is highly encouraged that the students in these departments purchase a Windows laptop. If a student chooses a Mac laptop, they will be required to download and install Parallels and Windows 11. See Software section for details.
First Year students - Please be aware that your anticipated major may require a computer with higher system specifications. Before making a purchase, we suggest checking the recommended specifications for your anticipated major.
Software
Software included in this document is required to be installed by the first day of class. Additional specialized software is required by several participating departments. Students will be sent information and instructions as needed.
For Additional Information please see the Laptop Program Policy and Laptop Program Policy FAQs.
HARDWARE | ||
Department |
Specifications |
Details |
Apple MacBook Pro Laptop |
||
|
FAV GD PHOTO TEXTILES FURN ARCH* D+M* ID* ILLUS* INTAR* LDAR* |
Recommended Specifications:
|
Approximate costs: Educational Discounts: Recommended Model: *Mac users who need to run Windows only software will need to download and install Parallels and Windows 11. See Software section for details. Apple MacBook Pros can run some software, but can’t do VR presently. **First Year students - Your anticipated major may require a computer with higher system specifications. Before making a purchase, we suggest checking the recommended specifications for your anticipated major. |
APPAR EFS** J+M FURN |
Minimum Specifications:
|
|
Windows Laptop |
||
|
ARCH FAV FURN ID
PHOTO TEXTILES |
Recommended Specifications:
|
Approximate costs: Educational Discounts: Recommended Model: HP ZBook Power G11 - 16-inch Display **First Year students - Your anticipated major may require a computer with greater system requirements. Before making a purchase, we suggest checking the recommended specifications for your anticipated major. |
APPAR EFS** FURN |
Minimum Specifications:
|
|
SOFTWARE | ||
Required Departments |
Software Title |
Details |
|
ALL DEPARTMENTS |
Anti-Virus |
|
Adobe Creative Cloud |
||
Microsoft Office |
||
ARCH D+M ID ILLUS |
Parallels* |
*Applicable only for Mac users who need to run Windows only software: |
Windows 11* |
*Applicable only for Mac users who need to run Windows only software:
|
|
AutoDesk Suite** |
Free student download. https://itservices.risd.edu/support/solutions/articles/18000068392 |
|
ARCH D+M EFS FURN ID INTAR |
Rhino |
Free student license, contact your Department Technician to get added to the departments Rhino Team: http://www.rhino3d.com/edu |
GD |
Apple iWork - Keynote |
Free download from App Store using a valid Apple ID. |
SPECIALIZED SOFTWARE (BY DEPARTMENT) | |
Students are provided with instructions by the departments. | |
Required Departments |
Software Title |
APPAR |
CLO |
ARCH |
VRay, ArcGIS, Miro, 3DS Max (an Autodesk product), Blender, Sketchup Pro, Revit (an Autodesk product) |
D+M |
VRay, Glyphs, ArcGIS, Miro, Ableton, Reaper, MaxMSP, Madmapper, Unity, RhinoCAM, Metashape Pro |
EFS |
Miro |
FAV |
Blender, Davinci Resolve, Logic Pro X, Maya |
FURN |
AutoCAD LT, Fusion 360, Keyshot |
GD |
Glyphs, Miro |
ID |
Keyshot, Solidworks, Miro |
ILLUS |
Maya, Blender, Unreal, ZBrush |
INTAR |
VRay, ArcGIS, Miro, Revit (an Autodesk product) |
J+M |
Keyshot |
LDAR |
VRay, ArcGIS, Miro |