Apple is closing its student discount gap, so start saving for your next MacBook now

You must now verify an .EDU email address to receive the price reduction

One of the many perks of being a university student is the fact that many companies are willing to give you discounts on their products and services. Whether you’re looking for a PC, movie tickets, or Photoshop, a student will help you get it cheaper. All of this applies to buying Apple products online as well, and until recently, the educational discount was open to anyone in the US. But now Apple is closing that gap, requiring shoppers to verify their educational credentials before browsing or purchasing products.

The change, which requires users to prove education status via UNiDAYS and limits customers to purchasing one device per category per year, appears to have been first spotted on Reddit by user u/siddharthsure (via XDA). UNiDAYS is a website that offers students and educators hundreds of discounts for as long as they are a member. To get membership in the US, all you need to do is have an email address ending in .edu and verify your email address annually.

Around the world, Apple’s approach to its education pricing is fragmented. Students and teachers in Germany, UK and India already have a verification system in place, but if you live in Canada or Mexico they still use the honors system. Luckily, most of these deals can be matched or beaten during the end-of-school sales if you can wait that long.

If you live in the US, getting and using the education discount won’t be as easy from now on. So if you’re looking to buy a fancy (and correspondingly expensive) new MacBook Pro, you’d better start saving now.

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