Microsoft has announced major changes to its Microsoft 365 Education portfolio. Most changes will apply at a school’s first contract renewal or extension on or after 1 January 2028. Existing agreements and entitlements remain in place until the applicable renewal or extension.
The changes include the retirement of Office 365 A1, the Student Use Benefit and free Exchange Online for alumni. Microsoft is introducing new licence options, including A0, a no-cost option for eligible students. A0 doesn’t include Exchange Online, SharePoint Online or Teams, so it won’t meet every student’s current needs.
Microsoft is also changing the education storage model. At the relevant renewal, the current 100 TB base allocation will be removed. Storage remains pooled across the tenant, with capacity based on eligible paid faculty and student licences.
Microsoft says A3 Faculty will gain Defender for Office 365 Plan 1, and A5 Faculty will gain Intune Suite. Cost is likely to dominate many schools’ response, but the security improvements are also a significant part of Microsoft’s stated case for the changes.
There’s a separate date for pricing: Online Services bought through Academic Volume Licensing move to a single consistent price across Price Levels at the first renewal or extension on or after 1 May 2027. This is separate from the wider portfolio changes.
What schools should check
- Confirm the next renewal or extension date and purchasing programme.
- Count Office 365 A1, Student Use Benefit and alumni email users.
- Identify which users need Teams, Exchange Online and SharePoint Online.
- Check pooled storage use and compare it with the capacity expected from the future licence mix.
- Compare the new security features with tools and licences already in use.
Read the full article, including hypothetical school and trust scenarios.