The trend to require students to own laptop computers is growing at universities nationwide, but seems to have had the most growth in schools along the east coast.

The program is not a new concept. It has been around in some schools for as long as 9 years. In 1996, Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, North Carolina the school raised tuition by $3,000 and included a laptop for every freshman. The university replaces the students' computers with newer models their junior year.

Students at The College of William and Mary in Virginia will also be required to purchase laptops soon. The college will phase in the laptop program this fall by offering freshmen the option of buying a laptop. In the fall of 2006, it will become mandatory.

Administrators at William and Mary in Virginia claim that the program will not add costs for students, because most come to school with a computer already. For some students it might even reduce charges associated with class fees.

According to Gene Roche, director of Information Systems at William and Mary, the My Notebook program will also allow the school to offer the students better and more efficient service.

"On campus we tend to fix a lot of computers for students who experience problems." Roche said. "Standardizing though the My Notebook program allows us to turn over service rates a lot quicker."

Other schools are phasing programs in as well. Fitchburg State College in Massachusetts plans to begin requiring students to carry laptops in 2006 but will begin testing the program on honors college students in the fall of 2005.

Some states have even become involved in the process. In October 2000, the Massachusetts Board of Education proposed that all students at public institutions of higher education should be required to own and use laptops within three years.