Canva, the popular digital design tool, is now free for university students
Canva Pro gives students access to unlimited creative templates, over 100 million photos, videos, audio and graphics and over 20 AI tools to help ease the creative process. (Caleb Winters/The Black Explosion)
University of Maryland students now have full, free access to Canva.
University of Maryland’s Division of Student Affairs announced in early October, that they teamed up with the university’s Division of Information Technology to bring every student access to Canva’s premium visual design tools.
Student’s premium accounts were made accessible Oct. 10.
“Whether you’re looking to create attractive class presentations or a standout resume to land that dream job, Canva has got you covered,” said the Division of Student Affairs. “With its intuitive tools, you’ll be designing like a pro in no time.”
Students and student-run organizations expressed their excitement towards the change.
Senior English major Chelsy Husni works in the Jiménez-Porter Writers’ House, where one of her primary responsibilities is creating creating flyers for events. Husni enjoys using Canva's expansive library of graphics, images, fonts and layouts, but faces the problem of accessing the program's premium assets.
“I’ve often faced the frustration of encouraging ‘premium content’ messages when I find the perfect graphic that completes my [flier.]”
Canva offers two payment plans for individual Canva Pro subscriptions. The first option allows for one to pay $15 each month. The second option is a yearly payment plan set at $120 a year.
Husni said the university’s decision is a game changer for creative students.
Freshman studio art major Jeannie Cronise is grateful for the university’s decision to provide free Canva. Without Canva Pro, Cronise said she would become frustrated when creating projects, struggling to find pleasing templates and clipart that were not locked or watermarked.
“Now I feel like I can take my design skills to the next level and create better content,” said Cronise.
Sophomore journalism major Keira Hardesty is a social media intern who builds and advertises the College Park Scholars Media, Self and Society Program’s Instagram page. Hardesty used Canva multiple times weekly to create social media content and infographics for classes.
“The University of Maryland providing free Canva Pro is really beneficial to me,” said Hardesty. “There are so many more templates that are available to create content as well as tools such as the background remover tool. Having free Canva Pro makes using the app a lot more seamless.”
Canva Pro gives students access to unlimited creative templates, over 100 million photos, videos, audio and graphics and over 20 AI tools to help ease the creative process.
The Division of Student Affairs and the Division of Information Technology said they are always looking for opportunities to provide students with resources that enhance their academic experience and campus involvement.