Extra Credit: The Smart Way Students Save

We've all seen student discounts offered at movie theaters scored by flashing student IDs at the ticket booth, but did you know that your student ID also counts as a VIP pass to discounted deals on popular hardware and software? That includes mp3 players, computers, and software for design, word processing, and more. Cashing in on academic discounts can save you hundreds to thousands of dollars a year on personal expenses - money you can save simply by being a student.

What is an Academic Discount?

For the purpose of providing affordable learning tools to students, teachers, and institutions, many manufacturers offer "academic version" software. This academic or educational version software can be discounted in price while offering the same features and functionality of the regular version of the same product. In most cases, academic software is exactly the same as the full retail version, though some programs may have a unique splash screen identifying the software as an educational version, or differ slightly in commercial features. Basically, it's the same bang for fewer bucks. The major distinction between academic and regular retail versions of software is in their license requirements.

To summarize these requirements: academic software versions are only for sale to authorized students and teachers of an educational facility and not to the general public. They are strictly for educational and study use by current students or teachers and are not for resale. This is where your student ID comes in. Purchasers of academic software are often required to supply proof of their current status as student or faculty – usually in the form of a student ID card.

Academic Retailers

Where can you go to get the student discount advantage on software, technology, and more? CampusTech.com offers discounted hardware and academic version software from well known manufacturers including Microsoft, Adobe, and Quark for students and faculty at huge discounts. Want that new release of Adobe Photoshop for design class? CampusTech.com offers the Adobe Photoshop CS3 Extended Academic version of Photoshop for 71% cheaper than the regular retail price, saving you a whopping 709 dollars. Even if you aren't an A+ student, you can't deny smart savings like that. The only catch: You have to be a student. So remember to cash in while you're still enrolled.

If you are still enrolled, verifying your student status for academic discounts at CampusTech.com is easy. You can be verified instantly using eVerification online, or you can submit a picture of your ID card as a JPG or GIF image file during or after checkout.

You don't have to major in math to know that saving up to 80% on student software is a good thing. You just have to be in the know to save money in a major way. So pass on the lesson to your friends.