Already verified student (since Feb 2026) stuck on Copilot Free due to activation pause

[javidanjavadov]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Question

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Benefit Activation/Waiting

Hi everyone,

I have a question regarding my GitHub Copilot access under the Student Developer Pack.

My academic benefits were successfully verified and approved back on February 15, 2026, and my student coupon is active until February 15, 2028. Therefore, I am not a brand-new applicant to the GitHub Education program.

However, when I check my settings, my account is currently placed on the standard, metered "Copilot Free" plan (showing 0% of inline suggestions used) instead of the dedicated student tier. I do see the banner warning that "New activations of Copilot Student plans are currently paused."

Since my student status was already fully verified months ago, is falling back to the standard "Free" tier the expected behavior simply because I didn't explicitly activate the Copilot feature before the pause went into effect? Additionally, once the sign-up pause is eventually lifted, will my account automatically transition to the full student benefits, or will I need to manually re-apply or trigger something?

Thank you in advance for the guidance!

[chater-marzougui]

I've been a student for the last 3 years and i'm facing the same issue now, copilot free is too limited it literally finished 200 credits in 3 prompts (didn't even finish the 3rd) waiting for answers

[javidanjavadov]

Totally agree. Copilot is the main reason most of us apply for the Student Pack anyway. Restricting verified students to a 'Free' tier that runs out in a few prompts completely defeats the purpose of the program. I hope GitHub fixes this soon.