Prepare your tech for online study

Steps to setting yourself up for online study

Before you begin your first teaching period with QUT Online, it’s important to ensure your computer is ready – set up with everything you need for your study journey ahead.

Step 1: Get up to speed

Nothing is more frustrating than slow internet, particularly when you’re about to submit an assignment or trying to chat with fellow students online. Before the teaching period rolls around, check the speed of your internet and ensure you’re running at a standard pace. If you’re unsure whether your internet speed is right, contact your internet provider to discuss further.

Tip: Make sure you have enough data allowance. We recommend 30GB of data per month for your studies.

Step 2: Buy the right hardware

When you study online with QUT you study in an environment that is designed specifically for the online space. There are interactive quizzes, videos and many opportunities to chat online with your Online Learning Advisors (OLAs) and fellow students.

To get the most out of this content, make sure your laptop or desktop computer is equipped with:

• Speakers or headphones
• Web camera
• Microphone

Tip: If you’ve had your computer for a while and think it’s time for an upgrade, studying online is the perfect time to do so.

Step 3: Download the right software

Your course gives you access to a range of learning materials in all formats and sizes, including videos, audio files and PDFs. To make sure you can view and use all you learning materials, please download the following software:

• Adobe Reader for PDF files
• VLC media player for all audio and video files

Step 4: Upgrade your operating system

We’ve all ignored a message to upgrade our computer operating system at one time or another. However, when you’re studying online, you want to make sure your computer is in the best condition possible. If you’re running an old operating system, some learning materials may be difficult to access.

To ensure you don’t come across any issues, you need:

• If you have a Mac: OSX Version 10.7
• If you have a PC: Windows 7

Step 3: Choose your browser

All web browsers are not made equal. And when your browser will be the gateway to your online classroom, you want to choose well. If you’re not using one of these already, we suggest downloading Chrome or Firefox for the best experience.

Tip: Unsure what system your device is operating on? Visit ‘What’s My Browser’ for a quick system check.