While we’re all terribly excited to move away from Vista and embrace Windows 7 when it comes out next month, nobody is looking forward to paying $120 or more to upgrade. However, things are looking up for you if you happen to be a college student right now. Microsoft has officially announced an offer to students that let’s them buy Windows 7 Home Premium (the version most of us will probably want) for just $30.

That’s a pretty hefty student discount, considering that Home Premium is going to cost $120 for the rest of us. When I heard this news I instantly thought Microsoft would put some convoluted system in place that would make it frustrating and nigh impossible to claim your student purchase. However, I was happily proved wrong when Microsoft posted the requirements. It’s simple; as long as you are an active student at an American university and have a working email address from your university, you qualify to get Windows 7 Home Premium for $30. No word yet on how this applies to people in exchange programs overseas.

Don’t panic if you aren’t quite in school just yet. The deal is going to last past the October 22nd release date; it will be valid all the way through January 3. If you’re interested, head over to the promo site. Microsoft has put together a few different pages promoting Windows 7 and what you can do with it. The site also has links to “The Ultimate Steal” on Microsoft Office for students, in case you forgot you’ll actually need to write a few papers and make a few PowerPoint presentations with your new version of Windows 7. Just go easy on the slide transitions. Seriously.