Laptop & Software Requirements

All Interior Architecture + Design (IAD) students must have a laptop that meets or exceeds the specifications listed below for use throughout the IAD curriculum. Choosing a laptop that exceeds the minimum specifications is strongly recommended to ensure design software runs smoothly through graduation.

  • Undergraduate students must have a laptop by the semester they enroll in ID-323 Presentation Drawings, typically in the fall of their third year.
  • Graduate students (First-Professional) must have a laptop by the semester they enroll in ID-323 Presentation Drawings, typically in the fall of their second year.
  • Graduate students (Post-Professional) must have a laptop by their first semester of study.

Laptop Specifications

The IAD program requires a Windows laptop. Mac laptops are not compatible with several critical programs used in the curriculum and industry. The department does not provide technical support for Mac systems.

Minimum Requirements Recommended Requirements
operating system: 64-bit Microsoft® Windows 10 v1809 or later or Windows 11.
processor: Intel® or AMD® processor with 2 GHZ or higher base core clock speed.
Highest single core base clock speed (GHz) is recommended
memory/RAM: 16 GB RAM 32 GB RAM
hard drive: 500GB SSD drive 1TB SSD drive
display: 13″ screen with external monitor
Resolution: 1680 x 1050 with true color		 15″ screen
Resolution: Ultra-High (4k) Definition Monitor
graphics card/GPU:** NVIDIA or AMD dedicated GPU with 8GB VRAM that supports Vulkan 1.1

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti or AMD RX 6800

The latest available drivers

 NVIDIA or AMD dedicated GPU with 8GB VRAM that supports Vulkan 1.1

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti or AMD RX 6800
The latest available drivers

mouse: 3-button mouse
unsupported hardware: The following graphics cards are NOT compatible with software used in our curriculum.
  • Radeon 6000 mobile GPU’s
  • Intel : Laptops: 13th Gen with UHD Graphics 64EU iGPU and above | Desktops: 13th Gen with UHD 730 iGPU and above
  • AMD : Ryzen 6000 series with Radeon 660M and above | Ryzen 7000 series with Radeon 740M and above
  • SLI (Scalable Link Interface)

 

Software Requirements

IAD students are required to install the following software on their personal laptops while enrolled at Marymount University.

Software Initial Course Year in Program Cost
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign		 VIS-121 Intro to Digital Tools Year 1 (B.A.)
Year 1 (M.A.)		 Provided at no additional cost to IAD majors.
Covered by the program software fee.
AutoCAD ID Elective (optional) Year 4 (B.A.)
Year 3 (M.A.)		 Free for students at Autodesk.com
SketchUp ID Elective (optional) Approximately $55/year at SketchUp.com
Revit Architecture ID-323 – Presentation Drawings Year 3 (B.A.)
Year 2 (M.A.)		 Free for students at Autodesk.com
Enscape ID-323 – Presentation Drawings Year 3 (B.A.)
Year 2 (M.A.)		 Provided at no additional cost to IAD majors.
Covered by the program software fee.
Microsoft Office ID-101 – Intro to ID and Theory
ID-500 – Practice, Theory, and Research		 Year 1 (B.A.)
Year 1 (M.A.)		 Provided at no additional cost to MU students.