About Google AI Tools: Gemini for Education and NotebookLM

Available February 2, 2026

Audience: Students, Faculty, Staff

Responsible Group: Enterprise Systems Team

Overview

The University of Arkansas provides limited access to select Google AI tools to support learning, research, and productivity. These tools are available institution-wide at no additional cost. At this time, UARK users (current employees and students) can access: 

  • Gemini for Education – free version, without Google Workspace integration 

  • NotebookLM – Available without document storage, file uploads, or broad sharing capabilities 

These tools can be useful for brainstorming, summarizing, drafting, and learning support, but they should be used with an understanding of their access limitations and data considerations. Under the Workspace for Education terms, enterprise data will be protected and not used to train AI models.

NOTE:  Only Gemini for Education and NotebookLM are part of this offering. Other Google productivity services, such as Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Workspace, are not included. Because we already have enterprise tools, licenses and contracts for similar services through Microsoft, the Google productivity suite is not included as part of the University of Arkansas' Google AI tools services.

IMPORTANT:
Users must follow all federal and state laws, as well as UA System and University of Arkansas policies when handling university data on any AI tool. 

Key Features

Availability and Eligibility

  • Access is limited to active students, faculty, and staff
  • Retirees and emeritus faculty are excluded due to compliance with licensing requirements
  • No request or approval process is required once access is enabled

Account and Authentication

  • Users must authenticate using their UARK email address
  • Single sign-on (SSO) and multi-factor authentication (MFA) are required
  • Users with pre-existing Google accounts tied to their UARK email may experience a different sign-in flow

Tool-Specific Constraints

Gemini for Education (Free Tier)

  • Limited to approximately 100 prompts per day
  • No paid upgrades are available

NotebookLM

  • Google Drive storage is not enabled by default
  • File uploads and extensive sharing are restricted
  • Storage quotas are capped (generally between 500 MB–2 GB per user)
  • No option to purchase additional storage

Access

You can access Gemini for Education or NotebookLM from a web browser or mobile device. Always sign in using your UARK account.

Note: The first time using the app will require connecting your UARK account to the Google AI Tools.

Web App via MyApps

  1. Visit myapps.microsoft.com.
  2. Sign in using your UARK credentials.
  3. Select the Google logo. Note: The My Apps dashboard is customizable and may not be listed alphabetically. 
  4. You will be redirected to the Gemini for Education browser app. 

Web App via Google Log-In

  1. Go to gemini.google.com or notebooklm.google.com
  2. Input your full UARK email address, e.g. username@uark.edu. This will start the SSO log in and use the University of Arkansas log in process.
  3. Continue signing in and affirming your MFA.

Mobile App

Download Gemini or NotebookLM from the following app stores and log in using your UARK account:

Training

NOTE: To access the Google for Education training below you must first register for the platform to gain access to the training. Certifications on the platform have an additional cost. University IT will have limited ability to assist with account access issues on the Google for Education platform.

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