Welcome, Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors

Hi everyone!

I've been receiving questions about the application process, the program, and my experiences. Hoping to be helpful, here are my answer to the most common questions:

The program receives applications constantly and the cohort (and the decisions) are announced quarterly. The last cohort was announced on August 6th. The next deadline for receiving applications is November 30th, which announcement of decisions will be in (maybe early) January. Note: You can still make changes to your application until that deadline if you want.

Regarding the selection criteria, it is explained on the website. See this article and https://studentambassadors.microsoft.com/en-US/faq for more info.

Now - from my personal experience as Student Ambassador, and not speaking on behalf of the entire program nor Microsoft - I can tell you that they're not looking only for tech experts or completely made leaders, as the program is actually an opportunity for you to acquire the skills related to both goals.

"Some experience in coding or technology is helpful, but we have tools and resources to help you learn in the program."

What they are looking for, I quote:

"Students from all academic backgrounds who want to grow their career and tech skills while making a difference in their communities"

In my last interview, I said: “The truth is, you don’t have to be an expert. What’s important is something that we all share: a passion for technology and passion for our community." I am a witness that these promises are kept, as the program has helped me not only grow my technical skills but also acquire interpersonal skills and increase my impact in communities - inside and outside of my country. You can know more about my experiences https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharifnasser/, some are:

• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6638279666102784001/ as a Microsoft Student Partner (now Student Ambassadors), where I went from receiving 20 attendees to +100.
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6638280295164497920/ to attend the Microsoft Student Partner Summit, which they had to postpone due to the COVID-19 situation.
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6654841922915495936/, receiving participants and incredible speakers from around the globe (around +700 registrations).
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6686374415657263104/, receiving over three thousand registrations.
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6686399685533552640/ program on Udacity for Microsoft Azure, which I found out about thanks to Pablo - our global manager.
• This summer I was part of a training program to become a mentor for tech students.

My recommendations for your application:

• The questions included in the application form are very important. Take the time to create your best answers.
• Be yourself.
• Show that passion you have in your application, be it for technology in general, a specific technology, your community, teaching others, sharing with others, connecting with others... you name it. Also, you can mention what are your goals in becoming a Student Ambassador or what you want to accomplish in the program (for you and for your community).
• Again, you don't have to be an expert. However, if you have past experience: perhaps you have made a blog/videos/tutorials, or you are part of a community, or you have created a community, or you have organized an event/conference/workshop, or any other experience that might showcase that passion of yours, you can mention it in your application.
• Be creative.

More info about the program - everything is on the website:

• https://studentambassadors.microsoft.com/en-US/faq
• https://studentambassadors.microsoft.com/en-US/milestones
• How it works

PS: I invite my fellow Student Ambassador to add any other information or resource that might be of help as well 😀