Apple\'s Back-To-School program offers free iPod

Students who purchase one of the qualifying Macs — a MacBook, MacBook Pro, iMac, or Power Mac G5 — and also purchase an iPod, will receive a $179 mail-in-rebate on top of their education discount.

Apple will encourage students to purchase a 2GB iPod nano along with their qualifying Mac because the $179 rebate will cancel out the cost of the player (also $179 for educational buyers.) Alternatively, students can choose to apply the value of the rebate towards any of the company's other iPod models.

In order to qualify for the rebate, students and qualified educational staff members must purchase the Mac and iPod at the same time and submit the sales receipt listing both items within 30 days. Only one coupon per household/physical address will be honored.

The program is only available through participating Apple Authorized Campus Resellers from June 5, 2006, through September 16, 2006. The promo also applies to remaining stock of Apple's 14-inch PowerPC iBooks and 12-inch PowerPC PowerBooks.

Apple held a similar Back-To-School program last year, offering a $179 mail-in-rebate or free iPod mini to new educational Mac buyers.