Free Microsoft Office for Students in Germany?
For many students, getting ahold of a copy of Microsoft Office, preferably at less than the price that Microsoft typically asks, can be indispensable. In the U.S., it's not uncommon for colleges or universities to offer full copies of an older version of Office for sale to students for a reduced price. If you're like me, who ended up moving here without a copy of Office on your computer, your options can be limited, as buying a copy at a reduced fee isn't something I've yet to find offered by a German University. Luckily though, they offer it for free!
In Germany, there is a program with universities across the country to offer Microsoft Office 365 to current students for free, on a monthly subscription basis. By logging in to the website your university has set up using the login information you were given when you registered as a student for your university email and other functions, you'll have a microsoft account generated for you, and be able to download the full version of the current Office 365 suite.
Your account will be month to month, a necessity given that students in Germany are not all on as fixed of an academic schedule of students in the U.S. typically are with regards to their registration status as a student. Before the month is out, all you have to do to keep the service running is to log back into your universities portal, and click on the "reactivate" button, or whatever similar option they've listed. If for some reason you forget, and one of the office programs begins to tell you that there's an issue with your account, go back into the portal, and you should see a button to open the account up again, with the only difference likely being a new password generated for you.
If you're not sure if your university offers this program, click the link below to be directed to search Microsoft's list of universities available. Happy working!