Microsoft offers a one-year free Microsoft 365 subscription to college students — eligible users get 50% off the monthly plan after the first year

Software giant Microsoft has offered a free one-year Microsoft 365 subscription to college students in the U.S., provided they sign up using their college email address. According to the company, eligible users will get a further 50% discount on the monthly subscription for Microsoft 365 Personal, saving them $5 a month. The subscription will provide students with access to desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote, as well as a terabyte of cloud storage on OneDrive. More importantly, it will give them free access to Copilot, the company’s AI tool.

“AI is the defining technology of our time, and how we empower people to use it will shape our country’s future,” said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. He also added, “At Microsoft, we believe that delivering on the real promise of AI depends on how broadly it’s diffused…And that’s why, today, we are making new commitments. For students, we are announcing today that they are making Microsoft 365 Personal, including Copilot, free for 12 months to every college student in the United States. This includes our community colleges.” Nadella also promised that K-12 students, teachers, and staff will get access to Microsoft 365 Copilot later.

This move is part of Redmond’s commitment to the White House’s efforts to increase AI education in the U.S., in support of President Donald Trump’s executive order, Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education for American Youth. The program is designed to train both teachers and students in artificial intelligence, helping to develop an American workforce that’s ready to address the rising threat of this technology.

Many industry leaders have been warning that AI will decimate white-collar jobs, with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei stating that it can potentially push unemployment to 20%. Ford CEO Jim Farley is warning that the company will eliminate half of its office positions in the U.S. We’re already seeing this trend. Although the widespread use of AI hasn’t yet resulted in mass layoffs, a Stanford study revealed a 13% drop in entry-level coding and customer service positions in the past three years, at least in AI-vulnerable fields.

But whether you want to learn more about AI or need an office suite you can use locally on your device, you’re going to save almost $100 with this offer. And if you don’t want to continue paying $5 a month after the free period ends, Microsoft also added instructions near the bottom of the page telling you how to turn off recurring billing to avoid surprise charges on your account.

Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source, to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!