Microsoft introduces new Azure For Students plan for university youths

Seems as though the cloud isn’t just for big business or overly convoluted big data research experiments any longer.

Microsoft recently announced that it’s making its Azure cloud services available for students looking to take advantage of the building tools for tomorrow’s advancements.

Today, we’re excited to announce Azure for Students. Designed uniquely with student-focused cloud usage in mind, this offer gives verified students full access to 25+ free Azure products as well as US$100 monetary credit for use toward our paid products with no credit card requirement. If you’re seeking to grow your cloud dev skills – you’re in the right place.

As is the case with most students, a free option to Microsoft’s cloud services would be preferred and fortunately, the company has a solution for just that request. According to Microsoft’s Imagine blog, the company has listed a few ways pupils can get started with Azure with no money down or without having to use Microsoft’s $100 credit.

• Discover the flexibility of Azure through our vast library of open source services.
• Deploy Azure Virtual Machines including powerful GPUs with support for Linux, Windows Server, SQL Server, Oracle, IBM, and SAP. Azure gives users the flexibility of virtualization for a wide range of computing solutions.
• Build Web and Mobile Apps quickly using .NET, .NET Core, Java, Ruby, Node.js, PHP, and Python. Integrate Azure App Service into existing frameworks and get unparalleled developer productivity with cutting-edge capabilities such as continuous integration, live-site debugging, and the industry-leading Microsoft Visual Studio IDE.
• Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning infuses apps, websites, and bots with intelligent algorithms to see, hear, speak, understand, and interpret a user’s needs through natural methods of communication. Enabling computers to learn from data and experiences and to act without being explicitly programmed.
• Harness Big Data by analyzing all data in one place with no artificial constraints with Azure Data Lake Store. Data Lake Store can store trillions of files and a single file can be larger than one petabyte in size—200 times larger than other cloud store options.

Microsoft’s ambitions for its cloud services seemingly has outgrown its original intent for its legacy operating system goals. No longer does the company seemed focused on a having a computer on every desk but rather having every service, science project, homework assignment, big data repository, app development tools and a host of other tangibles, resting on its Azure cloud.