June 2006

Jason Orchant
8th Grade
Albuquerque, N.M.

“I highly recommend Microsoft Student to any student who wants to have help for all subjects.”

Like many teens, eighth-grader Jason Orchant uses the PC for almost all of his homework. But with so much information at his fingertips, Jason wasn’t always sure where to find the right information and assistance. When Jason’s dad, Marc, heard about a new product called Microsoft^® Student, he encouraged Jason to give it a try.

Jason Orchant

Jason hoped Microsoft Student could help him understand his homework and help him get it done in less time. Marc hoped the software could offer homework help for Jason’s upcoming high school classes since it was becoming more and more difficult for him to provide Jason with the right level of assistance.

Jason began using Microsoft Student at the beginning of his eighth grade year and immediately saw results, completing his homework more easily and efficiently. Instead of sifting through thousands of Web pages to find information, Jason used the Microsoft Encarta^® reference content in Microsoft Student to find just what he needed. ”Encarta was incredibly helpful for finding and collecting reference information,” Jason said.

In addition thousands of trusted articles, Jason found the multimedia content in Microsoft Student very useful. Videos can bring a subject to life, and because the multimedia in Microsoft Student is just like the videos teachers show in class, Jason had easy access to helpful and accurate information.

Once Jason completed his research, he selected a template specific to his assignment through the Learning Essentials for Students feature. The template provided a tutorial with tips for outlining and drafting the report. The template also displayed a customized toolbar with a handy dictionary, thesaurus and style guide right alongside the document. Jason was able to quickly get beyond the blank page and focus on the content of his report.

Math is one of the most challenging subjects for students, and parents often have trouble helping with the difficult concepts. Tools such as Chart Maker and Graphing Calculator helped Jason complete his math homework more efficiently. He called it “one of the most useful tools I think I’ve ever seen on a computer program.”

After a semester of using Microsoft Student, Jason brought home his best report card since entering middle school. His father, Marc, said, “Jason is less stressed about big projects knowing he has these resources at his disposal.”

Jason said, “From my perspective as a student, Microsoft Student has been an invaluable tool for reports, school projects and homework. It’s also a lot of fun to just browse around because there are so many interesting videos, animations, games and sound clips. I highly recommend Microsoft Student to any student who wants to have help for all subjects.”

Microsoft and Encarta are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.