Student Discounts: Getting the most out of your status as a student

Student+Discounts%3A+Getting+the+most+out+of+your+status+as+a+student

Kyle Kissinger

Kyle Kissinger, Assistant Lifestyles Editor

College is not cheap. With expenses such as tuition, textbooks and just the general cost of living in a college town, it all piles up. As a student, college is likely one of the first periods in your life where you must learn how to properly budget money. Fortunately, your status as a UNC Wilmington student also comes with advantages, giving you access to a lot of useful discounts via your student ID, .edu email address, or directly through your university. Here is a list of several student discounts that are incredible handy in maintaining your college budget.

Adobe Creative Cloud

The university has purchased Adobe Creative Cloud licenses for all students. Creative Cloud gives you access to all of Adobe’s desktop and mobile apps such as Photoshop, Premiere, InDesign and After Effects. This is an incredible offer considering these programs are typically expensive to buy as standalone products.

Savings: The subscription offered by the university is $49.99/month when purchased through Adobe, but is offered to UNCW students for free.

Link: Adobe Creative Cloud for UNCW Students

Microsoft Office 365

The university has purchased Office 365 licenses for all students. Office 365 includes your student email account through Outlook, 1 terabyte of online storage, but most importantly Microsoft Office products–Word, Excel, PowerPoint and more. These programs are essential for getting through your college career.

Savings: Microsoft Office 365 for one person is priced at $69.99/year, but for students UNCW offers it for free.

Link: Microsoft Office 365 for UNCW Students

Spotify + Hulu

Spotify and Hulu recently announced a new partnership directly marketed for college students. Spotify–who was already running a student discount $4.99/month–now includes Hulu in the package. The program includes subscriptions of Spotify Premium (no ads, unlimited streaming) and the Hulu Limited Commercials Plan.

Savings: As a non-student, Spotify Premium costs $7.99/month, while Hulu’s Limited Commercial Plan is $9.99/month. The package is only $4.99, saving you $13/month with this combo.

Link: Spotify + Hulu Program

Apple Music

While it is not as strong as an offer as the Spotify + Hulu deal, Apple offers a discount for their music-streaming alternative Apple Music, competitively priced at $4.99 for students. It will be interesting to see if Apple decides to add any incentives to their student program in order to compete with Spotify and Hulu. It is also worth noting that a 3-month trial of Apple Music can be started for free when creating an account.

Savings: Apple Music is originally priced at $9.99/month, but is $4.99/month with the student discount.

Link: Apple Music Student Membership

Amazon Prime

Amazon offers a free trial of Prime for six months and then a discount of $49/year through their Prime Students program. Amazon Prime allows for two-day free shipping on Amazon Prime eligible items, as well as access to Amazon Video, the Amazon equivalent of Netflix or Hulu.

Savings: Amazon Prime is normally priced at $99/year, but through Prime Students you receive 50% off for $49.99/year. 

Link: Amazon Prime for Students

The New York Times

As a student, it is important to keep up with the current affairs in the world. The New York Times offers students a subscription for complete digital access for $1/week ($4/month, $48/year), as well as discounts on other packages, each scaling up in pricing with more premium content. As a first time reader, the first 4 weeks are offered for free.

Savings: The Basic Package of The New York Times is $3.75/week, but with the student discount it is only $1.00/week (plus 4 weeks for free).

Link: New York Times

 

Important Reminder:

These are just several examples of popular student discounts. Restaurants and stores in the Wilmington area have the tendency to have deals catering specifically for students–you just have to ask!