General Recommendation

Saint Louis University School of Law recommends that students purchase a quality laptop computer for their law school career. The laptop has become a prevalent and integral tool for successful law students, as well as practicing attorneys. While the School of Law does not require students to own a personal computer, having the right laptop will allow students to take advantage of many of the academic services that are available at SLU. Wireless Internet, wireless printing, and the ability to take final exams on your personal laptop have become an important part of a successful law school experience.

Minimum Requirements

In order to take advantage of ALL technical services available at SLU, your laptop MUST meet the following minimum requirements:

The most important reason to buy a laptop is so that you can take your final exams on your computer using the Extegrity “Exam4” software (What’s Exam4?). If you already own a laptop that meets the technical requirements (see above), you may still take advantage of the Law School’s Exam4 option for final exams.

Other Recommendations

In addition to the above requirements, the law school also makes the following suggestions. These are not required to take advantage of the School of Law’s services, but may improve your experience in general.

• 3-year hardware warranty – remember, you may be using your laptop for 8+ hours a day, 7 days a week
• 1GB (or more) USB flash drive – for transferring/backing up your important data
• Laptop carrying case – offers more protection than a backpack.

Where can I buy a laptop?

Where you purchase your laptop is up to you; law students are not required to purchase from any specific vendor.  The Law School does have an arrangement with CDWG to provide discounted hardware for SLU students. You can visit www.cdwg.com/slulaw to find a variety of discounted products. Not all products from this website will meet the Law School’s minimum requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure that whatever laptop they choose meets the requirements shown above.

What about my Mac/non-Windows laptop?

The law school does not require that students have a laptop; students are welcome to use any laptop make or model that they choose. However, the Law School does not recommend using a Mac. Certain technology services may not be available to laptops with operating systems other than Windows XP/Vista. Please refer to the chart below for the technologies available to different operating systems.

*64-bit versions of Windows are NOT supported at the School of Law.

Computer Labs

The School of Law has two computer labs with 25 computers each. These labs are reserved specifically for students.  Microsoft Office, web browsers, on-line legal research sites and a variety of other applications are available at all law school workstations.  While there is generally little difficulty in finding an available computer, exceptions exist.  Owning a laptop will offer greater flexibility and portability.

Can a laptop be purchased using my financial aid?

For information, please e-mail our financial aid coordinator, Jackie Koerner, at fin_aid@law.slu.edu.

What software will I need?

Most professors have students turn in assignments in an electronic format.  Microsoft Word is the preferred word processing format at the Law School; students submitting assignments must use a file format that can be opened from MS Word. Most programs can convert from one program to another, but you run the risk of losing formatting in the process. The current University standard is Microsoft Office 2003. Office 2007 (2008 for Mac) files are also acceptable. To purchase Microsoft Office, visit www.theultimatesteal.com

In addition to current Microsoft Windows updates and patches, you must have anti-virus software installed and up-to-date.  Symantec AntiVirus is provided Free by the University and is available for current students at https://www.slu.edu/its/software. (SLUnet ID and password are required to download the software).

What else do I need to know?

If you are going to use a laptop to do work, it is crucial that you take the time to learn about your computer! There are dozens of helpful introductory books available that can be found in most bookstores. Learn about the basic functions so that you understand how to organize, copy, move, and delete files. 

Learn how to make backup copies of your work, and remember to do so regularly. Every semester we encounter students who have lost a course outline or final paper simply because they failed to backup their work.

For further information about laptop requirements, software purchases, or other questions related to School of Law computing, contact the Law Help Desk at 977-7283, or visit Morrissey Hall Room 246, located inside the Omer Poos Law Library.

Note:  Law students are responsible for maintaining their personal computers. Saint Louis University School of Law does not provide repair or diagnostic services for student-owned computers. Students should contact their computer vendor for diagnostic and repair services. The School of Law can assist students with using SLU University resources, but will not perform any hands-on repair.