Since I was in a tech-related major during undergrad, I became the default IT specialist and device troubleshooter for friends, family members, people who lived in my dorm building, and other students who had trouble using their computer or other mobile devices. Practical information technology skills for college students aren’t something that is generally taught in classes or at the high school level, so I’ve put together a list of ten information technology skills every college student needs, based on frequently asked questions that I would receive as the “tech support” person in my peer group.
Troubleshooting Wi-Fi
Is the college wifi not working as expected? Having issues with connecting to wifi? I put this first on the list because it was the most common issue people would ask me about, and I would often have laptops, tablets, or phones placed in front of me by a frantic student asking me to fix what was wrong. Here are some examples of ways that students can troubleshoot Wi-Fi and try to fix devices on their own:
- Locate the IT Services website, which will post information about planned outages or unplanned outages impacting a specific area of campus
- ”Forget” wifi networks that don’t work consistently. For example, the “CoxWiFi” network at a restaurant near campus had issues with connecting, and sometimes my device would automatically connect to that network instead of staying on the wifi network I was using before.
- Identify the names of college and university wifi networks. Many colleges and universities also participate in Eduroam, which can be used to connect to the internet at institutions all around the world
- Register the MAC address of smart speakers, video game consoles, and similar devices with IT Services to access the internet
- Learn how to log in to the different wifi networks on campus, and connect/disconnect from networks when appropriate
- High amounts of traffic may lead to slower connections— switch between campus networks to compare connection speeds
While this isn’t specifically related to wifi, another helpful information technology skill for college students is to learn how to connect computers to the wired internet (Ethernet) connections that are present in many libraries and dorms. I noticed that my internet was much faster for online classes as an on-campus student when using the wired connection.
Related links
- Awesome On-Campus College Library Resources
- How I Set Up My College Desk With Low Vision
- Tips For Taking Online Classes As An On-Campus Student
- How To Create A Custom Dorm Skill With Amazon Alexa
Creating documents and presentations
When I was in high school, I earned the Microsoft Office Specialist Master certification, which meant that I was proficient in creating documents, presentations, spreadsheets, and using Microsoft Office products in multiple contexts. This made me very popular for group projects and presentations as I could quickly put together well-organized documents that also looked great. Examples of helpful skills to practice for creating documents and presentations include:
- Learning how to use headings and sub-headings to organize documents
- How to add a title page, page numbers, and other formatting requirements for professional documents (e.g. APA Style)
- Keyboard shortcuts and hotkeys for navigating software
- How to add images and include alt text/image descriptions
- Using commenting and proofreading tools to provide feedback on text
My college and department primarily use Microsoft products, but I’ve taken classes at other universities that used Google Workspace as well— learning both types of programs has helped me focus on assignments and not on figuring out how to add bullet points to something.
Related links
- Microsoft Office Specialist Certification and Low Vision
- How To Use Microsoft Sway With Assistive Technology
- How I Use Microsoft OneNote With Low Vision
- Designing Accessible Documents With Microsoft Word
- How To Create Accessible PowerPoints
- Secret Microsoft Office Accessibility Features I Use Every Day
- Make Proofreading Feedback Accessible For Low Vision
Performing a manual reset
“Hello, IT. Have you tried turning it off and on again?” – The IT Crowd
So many of my friends will tell me “I already did that!” before they ask me to help them troubleshoot their device, but sometimes performing a manual reset is the best way to get something working again. This does not wipe the memory from the device or delete files (unless they weren’t saved beforehand), but it can help with unfreezing a display or as the first step to identifying why a device keeps crashing or force-closing applications.
To perform a manual reset on a smartphone or tablet:
- Hold down the power button and volume down key at the same time until the screen goes black. If the device has a center/home button, hold down that button and the power button.
- When the screen goes black, press and hold the power key to turn on the device. Do not boot into safe mode unless instructed by someone else to do so
- The device will turn on as normal
To perform a manual reset on a computer:
- Hold down the power button until the screen goes black, and then press the power button again. Do not boot into safe mode unless instructed by someone else to do so.
- Alternatively, use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl-Alt-Delete and select shut down to turn off the computer. Power the device back on as normal after a few minutes.
Related links
- How To Make iPad Accessible for Low Vision
- Low Vision Accessibility Settings For Android Phones
- Low Vision Accessibility Settings For Windows 10 and 11
- Low Vision Accessibility Settings For Mac
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Computers
How to clear cookies and other data
One of my friends noticed that their computer was running incredibly slowly, and I asked them when the last time was that they emptied their recycling bin. Their response was something along the lines of “wait, you’re supposed to do that?” Apparently, they had also been having issues with cookies in their web browser that were making it challenging to access some of their favorite websites, so I showed them how to clear cookies and remove non-essential files from their devices to make them run faster. Examples of helpful information technology skills for speeding up devices and clearing data include:
- How to remove deleted files from the recycling bin
- How to clear app cache and get rid of temporary files (especially important for email as well as image-based social media apps like Instagram)
- How to clear cookies from web browser history, which may require signing back into websites
- Locating File Cleanup/Disk Cleanup Wizard to remove non-essential files
- Remembering to close background applications and tabs when not in use
It’s important to note that internet service providers and college wifi networks can still view a user’s internet history and the sites they go to, so this is not a way to hide browsing activity or keep things secret.
Installing drivers
Device drivers are the software that is used to connect hardware like keyboards, a mouse, cameras, monitors, or other accessories to a device. Sometimes, installing or re-installing drivers is enough to get something to start working correctly again, and I recommend downloading these directly from the manufacturer’s website (e.g. HP). Some colleges and universities also provide links for device drivers on their IT Services website, such as drivers for campus printers or scanners from the library.
Related links
- Mouse Pointers and Low Vision
- Computer Mice and Mouse Alternatives For Low Vision
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Keyboards
- Questions To Ask When Choosing A Desktop Computer For College
- Questions To Ask When Choosing A Laptop For College
Printing a document
I went on a few “field trips” when living on campus to help friends print out documents when they were having trouble using the printing services provided by our college, or I would offer to let them use the printer/scanner I had in my dorm. While not all students will want to have a printer in their dorm, learning how to print a document using the campus printers is an important information technology skill to have, and can include learning the following skills:
- How to send a document to a printer, including the names of printers for specific buildings. One of these “field trips” happened because my friend thought they were sending a document to a printer in their building, and we had to walk to the student center instead!
- Connecting a USB drive to a printer and browsing for the desired file
- How to customize prints to include double-sided pages or larger paper sizes
- Information about paying for printing and how funds are added to student accounts (some university programs have free printing)
- If a student has their own printer, learn how to use both wired and wireless connections for printing from devices. I personally used wired connections more frequently.
For students with visual impairments, I highly recommend checking out where a printer is before sending a document there for the first time, especially if there are multiple printers in the same building.
Related links
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Printers
- Awesome On-Campus College Library Resources
- Online College Library Resources For Digital Access
- Ten “Weird” Things I Brought to College
- How To Organize and Identify Cords For Low Vision
Spotting viruses and scams
Even though the university firewall and filters theoretically protect students from spam, viruses, and scam emails, these emails can still slip through. I’ve received a variety of weird, funny, and initially terrifying emails to my university email account suggesting that I was losing my financial aid, someone was trying to access my credit report, I had purchased a snow cone machine, and that my email had been compromised and taken over by hackers from Genovia (a fictional country).
In all of these situations, I forwarded these emails to IT Services, who confirmed to me that they were indeed spam or scams and that asked me if I had responded to any of them. If I had, my university email account would need to be shut down and I would lose access to years of emails and documents. Learning to identify malicious emails and practice online safety is an incredibly important technology skill for college students, as well as recognizing things like pop-up ads and disinformation.
Related links
- How To Recognize Phishing Attempts With Low Vision
- Online Safety For Visually Impaired Users: Safer Internet Day
- How I Organize Emails In College With Low Vision
Creating secure passwords
Learning how to create secure and easy-to-remember passwords as well as use two-factor/multi-factor authentication applications is another important information technology skill, as this helps keep student information safe and prevent accounts from being hacked or compromised. This is especially important for email accounts, as these can be used to “verify” identity when changing passwords on other websites.
Related links
- How To Create Secure And Easy To Remember Passwords
- How I Use Blackboard With Low Vision
- How I Use Canvas With Low Vision
- How I Use Moodle With Low Vision
Backing up devices and other data
To ensure that students can always access their data and other information on devices, it is important to learn how to use automatic device backup services like iCloud or OneDrive to ensure consistent access to files, photos, device settings, and other user data. When relying on a specific website or online resource for a class, I recommend downloading an offline copy that can be used in the event of an internet outage— this can include using a read-it-later application like Instapaper or the Send-to-Kindle extension, or downloading a copy of the file to the device.
Related links
- How I Back Up Mobile Devices With Low Vision
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Tablets
- How I Organize Digital Files For My Classes
- Implementing Shared Folders For Accessible Materials
- How To Organize Apps On iPad With Low Vision
- Sideloading and Low Vision
- Instapaper Accessibility For Visual Impairment
- How I Use Send-To-Kindle With Low Vision
Asking for help
When in doubt, don’t troubleshoot devices alone! While I endorse befriending people in technology-related majors (which is what I studied), a better way to learn how to ask for help is to take note of information technology and technical support phone numbers/contact information for products and services that college students regularly interact with, such as:
- Information Technology Services for college/university
- Technology companies (e.g. Microsoft)
- Software providers
- Campus library
- Assistive technology specialist
- Blindness/Low Vision organizations that provide technical support
- Student-run IT support for college/university
Related links
- Reporting Accessibility Issues: College O&M
- What If I Have To Report Disability Accommodation Violations?
- Ways To Get Accessibility Support For Virtual Learning
- Accessibility Support Phone Numbers and Low Vision
- What To Know About College Assistive Technology Specialists
Other information technology skills that can benefit college students
- Interested in learning how to navigate library databases? This will be super helpful for projects! Read Online College Library Resources For Digital Access and How I Read Research Sources With Assistive Technology
- Typing skills are a totally underrated technology skill that are huge for college success— check out my post Learning To Type With Low Vision
- Taking mostly online classes? Read Ten Tech Skills Every College Student Needs For Virtual Classes
Published March 9, 2018. Updated January 2025