Student application blocked because my school does not provide a school-issued email

[micheltpd19-netizen]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Bug

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Verification Help & Guidance

Hi everyone,

Hi everyone,

I am a student in Brazil applying for the GitHub Education Student Developer Pack.

My school does not provide students with a school-issued academic email address.

I completed the application and provided an official dated enrollment letter on school letterhead as proof of enrollment.

However, when I tried to submit the application, I received this error:

"We require applicants to use a school-issued email address to apply."

According to the GitHub Education documentation, students whose schools do not provide academic email addresses can provide official documentation explaining this policy.

What should I do to complete my verification in this situation?

Thank you.

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[kd5050612-debug]

Hi! If your university genuinely does not issue academic email addresses, you should still be able to apply.

GitHub's current Education documentation specifically says that students whose institution does not provide academic emails can use official documentation explaining that policy, such as a letter on school letterhead or an official school webpage.

Since you already have an official enrollment letter, I would try this:

1. Make sure the letter clearly shows your name, institution, current enrollment/status, and a recent date.
2. Ideally, the letter should also clearly state that your institution does not provide student/academic email addresses.
3. Upload a clear photo/scan of the document when GitHub asks for proof of enrollment.
4. If the application still blocks you with the “school-issued email address” message, don't keep submitting the same application repeatedly.
5. Contact GitHub Education Support and explain that your institution does not issue academic email addresses. Include your school's full name, website, and explain that you have official enrollment documentation. GitHub specifically recommends contacting Education Support when you are still stuck after trying the documented steps.

One important detail: GitHub says the verification process can be customized based on your school. So even though you have valid enrollment documentation, the application may still require additional verification depending on how your institution is configured in GitHub's system.

I would also avoid creating a second GitHub account just for the Student Developer Pack.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your application!

[samus-aran]

@kd5050612-debug Please provide links to help guide the user directly to where they need to request for support. Also suggest you include a screenshot of which dropdown they should select.