The Spring semester is winding down and soon, we will be in the summer. Summer is a wonderful time for those involved with academics to take inventory, try out new things and to implement changes. Since the founding of Digilent, we have always had an Academic program. However, over the years, the program has changed, added benefits and may look different than you remember. This season, we want to take the time to formally introduce new members to our Academic Program or update those of you who are already familiar. We feel it’s a good time to speak about each of the benefits and how they impact you!
Who is Eligible?
The Digilent Academic Program targets Electrical and Computer Engineering programs across the world. However, any institution of higher learning is eligible and welcome to apply for verification. We use the term Academic to refer to three primary groups of people, Students, Educators and Researchers.
- Students
A person who is learning material within a structured program and direction from an educator. - Educator
A person who is using technology for purposes of teaching. This may include professors and associate professors at universities, community college instructors, teachers in K-12 schools and instructors in specific course offerings. - Researcher
A person that is affiliated with a University, performing specific research using technology. This primarily includes individuals who wish to publish their work.
What is the Digilent Academic Program?
The Digilent Academic Program was created to enable Universities to gain access to the latest technologies from Digilent and our technology partners. Although Digilent already provides technology at a high value-to-cost ratio (boards under $150), the Academic Program was created to lower the barrier to new technology even further! This is primarily done through discounts and donations. Over time, additional benefits have been added such as educator specific bundles, longer warranties, discounted shipping and dedicated support.
As of May 1, 2018, the Digilent Academic Program includes the following:
- Product Discounts found on the Academic Price List – – 25% + off of commercial price
FPGA products
Scopes and Instruments
JTAG and Programmers
NI Academic Products
Accessories - Longer Manufacturer Warranty
The standard Digilent Manufacturer Warranty is 30 days from purchase. However, Academic Program (this includes Educator, Student and Researchers) sales automatically fall under a 60 day Manufacturer Warranty. Although we thoroughly test our products for defects and manufacturing errors, there is always a possibility that an edge case exists that we haven’t accounted for. To activate this benefit in case of defect, the purchase must go through our technical support team to determine cause of the defect. - Educator Specific Bundles
Working with professors with specific needs for their courses, Digilent can create course-specific product bundles to simplify the ordering process for students. Examples of this include the Analog Discovery 2 Student Bundle and the Basys 3 Student Bundle. To obtain a course-specific bundle, educators are encouraged to contact the quotes department at Digilent. - Discounted Shipping
Shipping coupons are available for bulk class purchases, just contact Digilent’s quote department.
For U.S. Based Educators, shipping is free. - Educator Specific Support
Educator needs are high on our priority list, so those with classroom related issues are prioritized in our support forum as well as given access to a direct email address. There is also a dedicated inside sales department for Academic Program purchases. - Other Benefits
The program is getting updated on an ongoing basis and new benefits are added to Academic Program groups periodically. Check with us to find out if additional benefits are made available.
Where do I get started?
We encourage you to get started by visiting the Digilent Academic Category on our store website. Then, you can follow the links to get to the Digilent Academic Verification page. What if you are already a verified academic customer? Then you will only need to log into your store account to see the benefits you already have! We have created a video to walk you through the steps of getting started.
