Track · Microsoft

Microsoft: Copilot essentials

Microsoft Learn's Copilot Chat (Basic) path, four free modules totalling about two hours, plus one for instructors. It starts with what generative AI is and how Copilot protects your data, then where to find Copilot Chat and how work and web grounding differ, then the four-part prompt formula (context, goal, source, expectations), then real tasks: summarising, drafting, analysing files, Copilot Pages and agents. Finish with the educators' module if you teach. Copilot Chat (Basic) is exactly the version Stanford provides, so everything here matches what you will see.

5 courses · ≈ 3h 10m total · free to take

Before you start, Stanford context: Stanford's free Copilot service is Microsoft Copilot Chat, approved for low and moderate risk data only: no PHI, Social Security numbers, financial account numbers or high-risk research data. The paid Microsoft 365 Copilot add-on inside Word, Excel and Teams is licensed separately by departments. Sign in at m365.cloud.microsoft/chat with your Stanford email and look for the Protected badge; see Microsoft Copilot Chat at Stanford for the steps and the data rules.

The sequence

What is generative AI? beginner31 minMicrosoft A short Microsoft Learn module on how generative AI produces content, the responsible-AI principles of fairness, transparency and accountability, how Copilot grounds answers and pr… Open Get started with Microsoft Copilot Chat (Basic) beginner24 minMicrosoft Introduces Copilot Chat (Basic), the free version Stanford provides: where to find it, how to move around the interface, the difference between work and web grounding, and how Ente… Open Write effective prompts to achieve optimal results beginner29 minMicrosoft The four elements of a good Copilot prompt (context, goal, source, expectations), best practices and common mistakes, custom instructions and Copilot Memory for personalisation, an… Open Work smarter with Microsoft Copilot Chat (Basic) beginner36 minMicrosoft Puts Copilot Chat (Basic) to work: brainstorming, summarising, drafting, analysing uploaded files, visualising data and generating code, collaborating in Copilot Pages, and how age… Open Enhance teaching and learning with Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat beginner1h 10mMicrosoft For instructors: the basic uses of Copilot Chat in teaching, designing prompts that support learning, creating course materials, and judging the quality and credibility of what Cop… Open

This track follows Microsoft's own progression; courses open on the vendor's site. Content and availability are controlled by the vendor.