As a student, you’ll naturally prioritize freebies, and that includes a free laptop. You’ll need it for many academic purposes, and even non-academic purposes to keep you digitally inclined. So, if you study in Australia, whether as a domestic or international student, this guide will walk you through the correct processes of becoming a free laptop owner.
There are a few legit laptop opportunities out there for you. It could be the Australian government, non-governmental, or even charities. However, a lot of students are never aware of these opportunities and often end up missing out. This is why some of these opportunities are often left untouched.
How to Get a Free Laptop for Students in Australia
We will look at 12 organizations right now. These are your guaranteed options. They’ve also had a reputation for giving students free laptops.
1. Ecstra Foundation Laptop for Learning
This will be our first in question, Ecstra Foundation Laptop for Learning. Ecstra Foundation partners with the ABCN (Australian Business and Community Network). Now, this free laptop you will receive comes under its initiative tagged #Laptopsforlearning.
If you don’t have a PC to help with remote learning or other stuff, this is the opportunity. Ecstra Foundation put a $3 million funding grant into this project. It isn’t a small project, so you’re really going to receive this laptop if you qualify. This free laptop is supplied by WorkVentures to Australian students in need.
2. Smith Family Digital Access Program
Smith Family’s Digital Access Program also makes it possible to receive a free laptop in Australia. You’ll, of course, need your student ID for this offer. Since 2020 till date, this program has given over 5,000 Digital Inclusion Packs, including laptops. However, the downside is that if you are not part of the Learning for Life families, you can’t get this offer.
3. Study Assist
So, Study Assist is provided by the Australian Government for Australian students. You’ll only avail of this laptop opportunity if you are in your tertiary education. There is a bit of a bias in this offer though. It really depends on your citizenship status. A lot comes into consideration, including whether you are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent, your type of study (higher education or skills and training), and whether you study in Australia or overseas. Truth is, there is no explicit mention of free laptops. However, Study Assist provides a comprehensive guide to different government assistance programs you may be eligible for, including cash offers. So, technically, you can use this money to get yourself a laptop while not paying from your pocket. We also have a guide on this website about the Centrelink laptop grant in Australia, so you should check it out once done reading this helpful piece.
4. Lenovo Education Discount
We’ll also look at the Lenovo Education Discount program for college students. It’s not exactly free but it comes with up to 5% off. Lenovo needs to be sure you are a student, so they’ll require you to register for the Education Store with your .edu email address. You’ll be sent a verification link to this email, so don’t even bother using a regular email like Gmail or Yahoo Mail. As for the inventory, not all the laptops will receive this student discount. However, there are so many top products here like the Pro 7i, Legion Pro 7i, IdeaPad Flex 5, and the ThinkPad series. All you have to do is head to the Lenovo education store and make your pick.
5. ARC eReuse
Our fifth free laptop opportunity for Australian students is the ARC eReuse. This offer is made possible by ARC’s idea of reducing e-waste. At the same time, this translates to free laptops because these recycled computers are given back to students for academic use. So, how ARC gets their laptops is through computer donations, including its accessories such as mouse, keyboard, cable, etc. All you have to do is go to the ARC eReuse page at arc.unsw.edu.au/community/ereuse and fill out the request form. You should receive a response as soon as possible.
6. Apple Education Pricing for Mac
Now, this is similar to that of Lenovo we mentioned earlier being that the laptop is discounted rather than 100% free for students. Apple has an offer called ‘Education Pricing’ for students in the university. This pricing discount supports any Mac model, including MacBook Air with M1 chip, MacBook Air with M2 chip, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro. We do have an article about how to get a free MacBook, you might want to check it out. With this discount, a MacBook Air with M1 chip at A$1,349 or a MacBook Pro priced at A$1,849 will be yours. This student offer is available at apple.com/au-hed/store.
If you have an eligible computer, you can trade it in and even receive credit towards a new Mac or an Apple Gift Card that you can use anytime. This education pricing plan comes with AppleCare+ for Mac, which provides accidental damage protection and priority access to Apple experts.
7. Microsoft Student
Microsoft won’t give you a free laptop for being an Australian student. However, if you go to microsoft.com/en-au/store/b/student, the chance is that you will find the best-discounted laptop with student-friendly pricing. So, you’re not going to pay the regular price. If you have a student ID, no problem. Microsoft has discounts and deals for students on laptops and PCs. You also get Microsoft Teams for free for your online classroom and continuous learning.
Do you already have a laptop? If yes, you can use the Microsoft trade-in program to trade in that old laptop and get cash back. If it’s not isn’t eligible for trade-in, Microsoft will help you recycle it for free.
8. Dell Student Purchase Program
Finally, you can take advantage of the Dell Student Purchase Program to own a laptop at a discount. It’s not exactly a free laptop for students in Australia but this Student Purchase Program is a discount for students. Some students aren’t rich, and as such, are not treated the same way a regular person would. With the Dell Student Purchase Program, you will receive up to a 7% discount on products like Inspiron Notebooks, XPS Notebooks, Vostro Notebooks, Alienware Notebooks, and Dell G Series Notebooks. You can also receive a 10% discount on Latitude Notebooks and OptiPlex Desktops.
Any student can get this discount – you just need to register with your school email address, which ends with .edu. When you sign up with your student email, you will receive a coupon code via email. Now, you have to apply the coupon code during the checkout on the Dell online store at dell.com/en-au/shop/lp/student-laptops. Meanwhile, make sure your student email doesn’t go to waste because there are many discounted premium apps you could use with it.
Conclusion
That’s pretty much it, and we’ve looked at different offers available right now. Some of these opportunities are not completely free but discounted, which still makes a good deal for many Australian students.
Read also: Best Australian government free online courses with certificates
