The Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors program is a student-focused program designed to empower students to become advocates and leaders in the tech ecosystem.
Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors are student leaders who collaborate with Microsoft to help fellow students learn about technology and engage with various Microsoft technologies and services.
It is important to note that Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors are not employees of Microsoft. While they work closely with Microsoft and have access to certain resources, training, and support from the company, they do not receive regular employee compensation.
Instead, student ambassadors often receive benefits such as networking opportunities, skill development, and recognition within the tech community.
Responsibilities of Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors
At the very high level, the responsibilities of student ambassadors include encouraging their peers to use Microsoft Learn, Microsoft's educational platform. It offers free resources, tutorials, and courses on various Microsoft technologies in a bid to help students build skills that open doors.
Student Ambassadors also represent Microsoft technologies on their campuses. In this capacity, Ambassadors engage with faculty and students to showcase the benefits of these tools for education and innovation.
Student Ambassadors are required to complete a variety of pre-determined activities in order to advance through the well-defined program milestones. As you complete these program milestones you can unlock additional program benefits.
You go through these milestones in the following order: new to alpha, alpha to beta, and beta to gold. With each milestone achievement, program certificates are updated.
To attain the Alpha milestone, new student ambassadors are required to complete a learn path on Microsoft Learn within four months of joining the program.
To reach the Beta milestone, first you need to complete the program's technical onboarding as a alpha student ambassador. Then you must host and report an approved event or actively participate in a Student Ambassadors project within twelve months of joining the program.
Finally, to achieve the highest milestone in the program (Gold), you are required to go above and beyond program expectations by demonstrating significant reach and impact.
How to Apply to Be a Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador
Before applying, it is important to note the following:
- The minimum age requirement for applicants is 16 years.
- Full-time enrollment in an accredited academic institution (such as a College or University) is required for applicants.
- Applications are restricted to individual persons and not open to corporate entities.
- Individuals who are Microsoft employees or current contractors are ineligible to apply.
If you meet these qualifications, you can apply to become a Student Ambassador.
The most important thing to know about the application process for the Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador program is that the application is open all year long. But applications are only reviewed (and applicants are gotten back to) quarterly – in January, April, July and October.
You can find the application form here. The application consists of four major parts – privacy and terms, personal information, academic institution, and application questions. Let's go through each one now.
Privacy and terms
In the privacy and terms section, you are required to agree to the Microsoft Privacy Statement and confirm your eligibility for the program.
By completing this section, you accept that as you submit your application, your information will be shared with the Microsoft program lead who manages Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors selection in your region.
Also in this section, you are informed that if your application is not accepted, although all the information you provided will be removed from their servers within twelve months of the application submission date. You can request removal of your application data at any time without constraints.
Personal information
In the personal information section, the required prompts include your name, contact email address, date of birth, gender, pronoun and country or region.
You can also enter your preferred programming language in this section (but this particular question is not required).
In this section, you can also add the social media profiles you use for community leadership as an allusion to your online influence and network.
Academic institution
In the academic institution section, as the name implies, the prompts are aimed at getting the country and region of your academic institution, its name, your degree program and your expected graduation date.
The available options include Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, Engineering - Other, Information Systems, Cyber Security, Business and Others). You'll also be asked to list your degree level (the selections accessible are Bachelor, Master and PhD).
Application questions
In the application questions section, as an applicant, you are required to answer the following three questions.
- Tell us about one specific technical skill you have learned, and how you were guided to learning it. How would you use that experience to be a better Student Ambassador? (Guide)
- Tell us about a specific time you welcomed a new person into one of your communities. How would you use that experience to be a better Student Ambassador? (Welcome)
- Tell us about a specific event you have planned that connected diverse audiences together. How would you use that experience to be a better Student Ambassador? (Connect)
Now, here's the catch. Whilst every applicant gets to answer all three questions, each applicant also gets the opportunity to answer any two of their choice with written responses and one as a video response. I think this is an attempt to get applicants to demonstrate their public speaking skills.
The video must be under two minutes and should be recorded in a quiet space without background noise. The written responses, on the other hand, must be a minimum of 100 characters and maximum of 2000 characters each.
Also, the video response's link has to be publicly accessible to anyone with the link. If an applicant chooses to record their video in any language that is not English, they must include English subtitles.
There's an option to pick from a list of technologies and highlight which ones interest you.
Finally, in more than 100 characters and less than 1000 characters, you can share the link to your Microsoft Learn profile (if you have one) and provide the reviewing team with details about your engagements within your community, both in online and on-campus settings.
In that space, you can also let them know about any organizations you are part of, particularly if you hold leadership roles. Feel free to share any additional information you consider important in this section.
The application process/essays may seem quite lengthy. But the good thing about it is that the essay portal automatically saves your application as you go, so you can leave at any time and come back later to continue your application.
Benefits of Being a Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador
The benefits of being a Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador are many. First, you benefit from comprehensive technical and leadership training and gain access to Microsoft's extensive array of learning materials. You also get to connect with a worldwide community of students who share your enthusiasm for building the future you envision.
In my opinion, the biggest thing student ambassadors stand to gain is the community they become a part of alongside fellow ambassadors. This community offers an extensive network of peers, mentors, and professionals who are all invested in the same mission. It becomes a platform for collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and personal growth.
Here are a few other benefits that are accessible as you progress through the milestones:
Benefits of the New Milestone
Microsoft 365: This is a product family of productivity software, collaboration and cloud-based services owned by Microsoft. As a student ambassador in the new milestone, you get Microsoft 365 subscriptions.
The Microsoft 365 subscriptions include full Office desktop apps such as Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Access and Publisher for Windows PCs, as well as access to additional OneNote features.
Benefits of the Alpha Milestone
In addition to the benefits that comes with the new milestone, student ambassadors get access to Visual Studio Enterprise. This annual subscription provides Student Ambassadors with $150 monthly Azure credit, license keys to various Microsoft Products, and many other benefits.
In addition, in line with the program's dedication to the growth of student ambassadors, student ambassadors in the Alpha milestone and beyond get free access to LinkedIn Learning.
Benefits of the Beta Milestone
In addition to the existing benefits, upon reaching this milestone, student ambassadors get a Beta swag box.
Benefits of the Gold Milestone
On top of the previous benefits, student ambassadors who achieve this milestone get a Gold swag box, more program leadership opportunities, consideration for special events and activities, and consideration for MVP mentorship and nomination. This is the highest milestone in the program.
Windows Insider for Student Ambassadors
Finally, one last benefit I want to touch on is the Windows Insider Program for Student Ambassadors.
Thanks to the Windows Insider Program's collaboration with Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors, when Student Ambassadors become part of the Windows Insider Program, they will get a chance to preview upcoming Windows features and offer input to influence the direction Windows takes in the future.
Wrapping Up
Once you graduate from the Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador program at the Gold milestone, you will be eligible for nomination to the Windows Insider Most Valuable Professional (MVP) program.
This prestigious status comes with exclusive interaction opportunities with the Windows engineering team, special event invitations, and complimentary subscriptions to tools such as Visual Studio Enterprise, Office 365, and LinkedIn Premium. You you will receive a personalized award kit to commemorate this achievement.
I hope this guide helps you apply for the program and know what to expect! Thanks for reading.