Macbook for university

The only advice I have is don't get the entry level version of anything. Given the criteria you specify, and in order of importance, upgrade its storage to as much as you can afford, followed by memory, followed by CPU.

You have two basic choices for the MacBook Air, the i3 and the i5 CPU (processor). Compare them on this page: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air

You can upgrade either one to the even faster i7 but consistent with my recommendation I'd stick with the i5. It's about 33% faster then the entry level i3 CPU.

Since you are buying it for college, scroll down to the Shop for College page. That will result in an instant $100 price reduction, offsetting the cost of the faster CPU.

Oh and one more thing on the subject of saving a few bucks: start with the Shop for College page, then scroll down again and go to the Refurbished and Clearance page. That will save you another $50 or so, for a current production Mac that's essentially indistinguishable from new.

At the moment there are quite a few 2020 MacBook Air models including some with the i5 CPU. Their inventory changes rapidly, even hourly, so if you can't find one in the configuration you want check again some other time.

$50 might be enough to buy maybe a quarter of a sociology textbook, but doesn't get better than that.

Don't forget that as an enrolled student you may be eligible for discounts or a free licence to various bits of software, such as Microsoft Office or SPSS. Enquire with your university.

I'd echo John's advice in the thread. If you want longevity in your Mac invest as much as you can.

Two family members in my house recently finished 4 and 5 years respectively in courses similar to yours using 2014 and 2015 Airs with medium-level internals and this was more than satisfactory (for them). With a small hard drive on an Air, though, they used iCloud to store and sync important documents.