Educational Technology Information
Educational Technology Requirements Heading link
All students entering the University of Illinois College of Medicine (UI COM) are required to have a laptop computer and a working webcam at the time of matriculation. There are no requirements in terms of model and manufacturer.
Please note that we will provide tech support service only to currently enrolled Medical, SPP, and PostBac students whose laptops meet the minimum recommendations listed below.
In most cases newly or recently purchased laptops will meet need. You will be a student for the next four years (or longer for MD/PhD students) so keep in mind the laptop you choose. Please note the laptop considerations below:
- USB-A and HDMI, or USB-C for your laptop which will enable you to connect your laptop or tablet in the Learning Center rooms.
- USB network adapter if your laptop does not provide the data jack and you wish to use wired network instead of Wifi.
- Extended laptop warranty and/or accidental warranty should the laptop suffer an incident.
- Download the Poll Everywhere app (free) on your smartphone/tablet, or bookmark the browser-based (website) version on any device. Poll Everywhere is used for student responses via electronic devices during lecture or active learning sessions. Learn more about Poll Everywhere.
- Foam earplugs for computer-based testing.
- Install a virtual private network (VPN) to access Library resources off-campus. More information from the Library.
- UIC Webstore offers software such as VPN, Microsoft Office, Antivirus, Adobe, etc., for student use.
- Ensure you have downloaded Zoom. Prior to Orientation you will get access to the licensed version of Zoom through UIC. Zoom FAQ
- Recommended and required textbooks and other resources can be found in Blackboard.
UIC WiFi Heading link
Campus provides Wifi capabilities. UIC Wifi FAQ
Optional Consideration Heading link
Optional Considerations – almost always, your tradeoffs are size, weight, and price.
- We highly recommend you purchase headphones at your discretion and financial ability; even better is to purchase a headphone with microphone set. They range widely in price so keep that in mind. For testing, you may also want to invest in some good ear plugs if you take exams remotely and your location is noisy. While wireless / bluetooth options are great, you might want to ensure you also have headphones that can be plugged into the headphone jack to your laptop in case the wireless connection stops working for some reason.
- All of the instruction materials you are required to use will run under either the Macintosh or the Windows platform. The decision whether to purchase a Macintosh or Windows-based computer must be made by each student.
- Consider an external drive for storing more data.
- Upgrade to a larger battery if weight is not a concern to increase the amount of time the laptop can be used without having to plug into a power outlet for recharge. Be aware that batteries degrade over time and must be replaced when run time is no longer sufficient.
- A larger screen generally provides higher resolution and therefore more information on the screen at one time. A full size keyboard is suggested, but larger screen sizes also correspond to heaver machines. This is your call, however, you have to look at it and you have to carry it around. Students are expected to bring their laptop to class for use in classroom activities, unless informed otherwise
Tablets (Apple’s iPad, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, Motorola’s Zoom, Windows Surface etc.) and Netbooks (super small laptops with limited memory and processing power) do not meet the minimum hardware requirements for UI COM. That being said, a tablet can make studying portable, and certain activities are easier on a tablet or smartphone than on a laptop.
In general, our students think that laptops are necessary, and that use of a smartphone and/or a tablet can be of (considerable) additional utility. Desktops are considered not necessary. We can not recommend a tablet as your ONLY computing device. There are still certain educational programs that will not operate optimally and/or the workflow of the learner does not support using a tablet completely. There are times when using a laptop is easier, and our current web slides for Histology and Pathology courses will not work correctly on iPad – we are working to address tablet compatibility for these applications.
Printing on Campus Heading link
Some students find it useful to own a printer, others find they can be “paperless” with the use of a tablet computer.
- Chicago: There are b/w and color printers available for “pay-to-print” in Edelstone Student Lounge (basement of College of Medicine West Tower (CMWT) as well as near the elevators on the third floor in the Learning Center. You can print to these from your laptop – see printing services for more information on UIC Campus Printing.
- Peoria: Students have access to a b/w printer in the library and both b/w and color in the library learning lab. These are only accessible by using the computers in the library or learning lab. Students have a print account that they can add money to in the cashiers office.
- Rockford: Click here for more information.
Most teaching and learning locations in the College of Medicine, as well as in the dorms, cafeteria and the Library of the Health Sciences (LHS) have wireless network access. You will also find it useful to have high-speed Internet access at home, if you intend to study there.
Finding Help Heading link
We strongly discourage you from purchasing a service contract or warranty from anyone other than the original equipment manufacturer (Sony, Dell, Apple, HP, etc). We have experienced significant difficulties in dealing with 3rd party support vendors.
Chicago students: Contact the Help Desk by submitting a ticket here, if you have questions about your purchase decision. Note that the Help Desk is not able to provide loaner laptops to students, but do provide 24/7 access to a small number of computers in the Edelstone Student Lounge.
Peoria students: Students can contact the Help Desk
Rockford students: Contact the help desk at comrhelp@uic.edu
Statement on Lecture Recordings Heading link
We are very fortunate to have a video recording system here at the University of Illinois College of Medicine that allows students to view educational activity session recordings at times other than the live scheduled sessions in our on-campus lecture/active learning halls or via online meeting software like Zoom.
The intent of the educational activity recordings is to augment your learning; to allow self-review after attending an educational activity in order to fill in any areas that may have been missed during the session.
The vast majority of educational activities are recorded, but the decision to record ultimately rests with the individual instructor. As much notice as possible will be given when an educational activity is not going to be recorded, however this cannot always be assured. In addition, there is always the possibility of technical problems which can result in the loss of the recorded material. If a suitable recording from another campus or a previous year is available, it will be used as a replacement. The only way to be absolutely certain that you will be able to acquire all of the information from every educational activity presented by the College is to attend the live session in person or via online meeting software like Zoom.
While we always try to process video recordings and make them available to students as soon as possible, availability is impacted by volume of recordings being processed, load on the university systems (Echo360, Zoom), and other factors that may be vulnerable to local, national or worldwide events (Eg. COVID 19 or excessive weather systems). Therefore, students may need to wait up to two business days after the end of a posted event to receive the recording via Echo. For educational activities which occur on Friday, the recordings may not be available until late in the day on Tuesday. Students should consider this and plan accordingly.
Educational activity recordings, notes, handouts, slide presentations and any other material are protected by federal copyright law. Copyright owners hold exclusives rights to their content, and you may not copy this material, provide copies of it to anyone else, or make use of it for any purpose other than personal review without prior permission from the faculty member (17 U.S.C. § 106). This is a professionalism issue as well as a legal and ethical issue.
Updated June 25, 2024.