At the Michigan School of Psychology, the use of technology is integrated throughout the academic programs.
Individual Skills
To ensure success at MSP, incoming students must be competent in the following technology skills. If you need to increase your proficiency, we recommend seeking out education and/or training before the fall semester begins.
Students must have the ability to:
- Navigate websites
- Conduct web searches
- Read, reply, delete, and manage email messages
- Send, receive and open email attachments
- Access, create, and save documents in Microsoft Office formats
- Configure and run applications, including an antivirus application
- Cut, copy and paste between applications
- Save files to a USB drive
- Download and install common plug-ins and configure common browser options
Computer Requirements
Students must have access to a home computer and have reliable internet access in order to be successful in their program. Many workplaces have restricted internet access, and workplace firewalls and security measures may prohibit the use of Moodle and other school software students are required to use.
To assist students in selecting the best computer for their academic needs, required technology specifications are listed below. The specifications listed are the minimums required and apply to Windows and Macintosh systems.
Please note that these requirements are subject to revision as technology changes rapidly. MSP recommends exceeding these criteria when possible. Some courses may have additional software or hardware requirements.
Minimum Hardware Requirements:
- System must be able to run Microsoft Office 2016 or higher
- Any edition of Windows 10 or higher/MacOS Sierra or higher
- USB ports
- USB flash drive
- Speakers/Soundcard
- Webcam with built-in microphone
Minimum Software Requirements:
*These are just minimums. We recommend keeping all of your software up-to-date.
- Web browser compatible with Moodle (most recent version of Firefox, Edge, Safari, Google Chrome, IE)
- Microsoft Office 2016 or a more recent version of the Microsoft Office software suite, such as Microsoft Office 365 (available as a free, renewable subscription to enrolled students at MSP)
- Antivirus and antispyware application that is updated regularly
- Adobe Acrobat Reader – latest version (free download)
- Media player
- Backup device or service– an external hard drive or a subscription to a cloud based backup solution is highly recommended.
Mobile Devices
Mobile devices (e.g. smartphones, Apple iPad, Kindle, Nook, Galaxy Tab, etc.) do not meet the minimum hardware requirements listed above. They may provide sufficient performance for basic tasks such as web browsing, reading textbooks, or simple word processing, but use of all required software may not be possible. Students will still need regular access to a computer.
Internet
Students should have a reliable Internet Service Provider (ISP) with speeds suitable for streaming video, using Zoom, and accessing large files. Some students may qualify for free/low cost internet. See resources here.
MSP students are assigned an MSP email address upon admission. It is required that students check this email daily as school, class, and instructor communications will be sent to this address. Students are responsible for all communication sent to their MSP email address.
If you have any questions or concerns about these requirements, please contact the Admissions Coordinator.
