RADFORD -- If Radford University's music majors don't already own iPods, they'll need to get one before classes begin this fall.

The ubiquitous iPod -- the most popular accessory on college campuses -- will become a required tool in these students' course of study in the coming school year.

"We see this as a way to share recorded music with our students in a really easy way, which will make a big difference for our students," said David Zuschin, an instructor of music and history at RU.

The rollout of the iPod requirement comes at the same time that the university's Department of Music is developing a new digital music library, Opus X.

The library is being compiled this summer from the department's collection of CDs and will be accessible on three computers in the music lab.

Zuschin is heading that initiative, with help from the university library and technology center.

Only professors and department staff members will be able to download recordings from Opus X to students' iPods.

Because of the design of the iPod, students cannot copy the music to their computers or to CDs from the portable devices. This limitation ensures the recordings will not be distributed widely or used beyond their educational intent -- provided no one hacks the system.

The iPod requirement will affect about 140 RU students who are majoring in music.

"I think it's great," said Erin Showalter, a rising senior in the department. "It's almost necessary now. Rather than having all these CDs to carry around, you have one little thing the size of a deck of playing cards."

Faculty members in the music department unanimously supported the iPod requirement in the spring.

Faculty will not only assign recordings to listen to on the devices but also develop quizzes and other interactive educational activities on them, Zuschin said.

Eugene Fellin, the chair of the department, said he doesn't think the cost of the devices will be much of an issue for students. The model highly recommended for purchase by the department costs at least $269, with the Apple educational discount.

Fellin compared purchasing an iPod with buying textbooks, which can run to $150 each and are usually used for only one semester. The iPod can have multiple uses throughout the career of a college student and beyond, he said.

Radford is not the first university to compile a digital music library.

Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music is pretty sure it captured that distinction in 1996, when it first put a portion of its collection online.

That collection, now called Variations2, consists of about 12,000 sound recording titles, said Jon Dunn, associate director for technology with the digital library program at IU.

Zuschin said he hopes to digitize at least 1,500 CDs by the time classes begin in August.

The university is also not the first to use iPods in the classroom. Georgia College and State University, for example, uses them in nearly 20 courses, including four music classes.

Unlike RU, Georgia College does not mandate that students own the devices. Instead, the college issues them to students enrolled in classes that require their use. The iPods are then the students' ticket to take the final exam.

Zuschin believes that Radford University is the first college to pair the two initiatives -- requiring the iPods and introducing the digital music library.

The Radford University Department of Music highly recommends iPods that fit the following specifications:

Storage capacity of 30 or 60 gigabytes

Video-viewing capability to see performances, including those by students and faculty members

Large screen to view orchestral or other group performances