Where can I get a cheap, virtual, high-performance server suitable for academic use? I am working on a machine learning project for which I need proper computational power. Assuming that my local university can't provide a server to run the code, I am looking for an online website which sells virtual servers for limited time — as in a month or less.

I heard that some companies provide free servers for students if they prove their status as students — but I failed to find anything with a search on Google. Is there anywhere which provides virtual high performance servers suitable for academic use?



One of the reasons I ask this question on Academia Stack Exchange is that most of the VPSs you can find on the net are more focused on the quality of bandwidth and connectivity, but I am just focused on CPU and Memory setting (I just need to run a Matlab or Octave program).

P.S.: This question is related to the subject matter at Server Fault and Super User, but those sites are almost completely focused on servers suitable for web-based applications. Also, they don't know about the opportunities provided for students for free or at low cost.
In most countries, there exist high performance computers that researchers can apply for access to.  For example, in Sweden there is the National Supercomputer Centre, and other countries have similar projects.  When you get access, you get a limited number of core-hours (for example, if you have 5000 core hours, you can run 50 cores for 100 hours or 500 cores for 10 hours) to be used over a specific period of time (for example, one year).

To apply for access, you may have to go through someone who is employed at a university, if you aren't.  If you are a student, you hopefully have a supervisor who can apply for your project.  Or they might have special services for students!