New equipment at Benadictine University Springfield is very needed.

New technogoly equipment is badly needed at Benedictine University Springfield. The current computer setup is certainly not sufficient to suit the educational needs of communications majors. It is necessary for us as students, not only to graduate, but to graduate with the practical experience that will help us find employment. This includes applying up-to-date computer software to communications-related projects. It is currently not possible to effectively do this.

For example, last year, I took a class called Television Productions. The instructor was very knowledgeable of the field. Unfortunately, this is not the only prerequisite to composing a successful class. The technology was simply not sufficient enough for us to complete our projects in a timely matter. For one thing, half of the lab computers did not even have the correct software which we were working with. The machines that did have the correct software, did not have satisfactory hardware to run it. I lost track of how many times I would complete several hours worth of work, only to have the computer freeze up upon exporting a file.

This problem could be easily fixed. I know whenever one thinks about computer upgrades, the concept of dusting off the purse often leads to procrastination. But this is not something that can wait even a year. We are using out of date computers. Our prospective employers assume that when we graduate, we do so with up to date knowledge and technological experience. By putting this subject off to a future date, Benedictine is giving its students a disadvantage with regards to obtaining future employment.

We at least need a select number of computers set aside for communications applications. Students could use these computers for video and audio editing of communications-related projects which would add to the education experience as well as expand our portfolios. These computers should have an AMD-64 processor. It should have at least 3 GB of RAM. Also, it should have at least 500 GB of Hard drive space.