I see the requirements for recommended laptops for engineering majors from the website below.
There are way too many options with the given specifications. Does anyone have any recommendations on which brand/model you have bought or placed an order for? Please DM me if possible. Thanks!
As one who agonized this back in the day, I’d say not to overthink it. Anything that meets the criteria will be fine. They are all so similar for what they’ll need that there is no “best.”
People will say you need this or that feature, but the reality is you can’t replicate the power and features of a desktop, so don’t try.
“Other Daughter20” (TAMU ME sophomore) and “Daughter20” (Clemson ME sophomore) both have the recommended Dells and love them. No lag with Solidworks, CAD, etc, even with 3 windows and 25+ tabs open 
Avinext sells the recommended laptops. They work directly with Tamu engineering so they are solid when it comes to what is needed.
Also Mac resources also.
Get them quick tho because most computers are back ordered right now.
Last year I got my son a Dell XPS 15 with an i7 processor, 16gb ram, 512 ssd drive, and an upgraded graphics card for his engineering courses. This was recommended by his school and is what they carry and sell to students also.
All those will work, so its best to stick with what your DS/DD is familiar with.
Thanks everyone!
My D got through 4 engineering years at Purdue with a Dell Inspiron 14. It’s currently $749 and the 15 is $999. The XPS is sleeker and higher-end, but not more functional, IMO.
Any i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD Windows machine from a reputable manufacturer should do.
I recommend the priority, on-site, etc. service plan for 4 years. It’s a bit pricey, but when my D dropped hers, she had a new screen, daughterboard, ports, etc. in 3 days at schools. A friend without the plan had to send hers in for service and wait three weeks. That’s difficult in the middle of an engineering education. The school recommended it.
