Allen ya halarci Lakeside School, wata makaranta mai zaman kanta a Seattle, inda ya yi abokantaka da Bill Gates, wanda yake da shekaru biyu, tare da wanda ya raba sha'awar kwakwalwa. Sun yi amfani da tashar Teletype na Lakeside don bunkasa ƙwarewar shirye-shiryen su a kan tsarin kwamfutoci da yawa. Sun kuma yi amfani da dakin gwaje-gwaje na Sashen Kimiyyar Kwamfuta na Jami'ar Washington, suna yin bincike na sirri da shirye-shiryen kwamfuta; a kalla a wani lokaci a shekarar 1971 an dakatar da su daga dakin gwaje-gwaje don cin zarafin gatan da suke da shi a can. A cewar Allen, a lokacin samartakarsu shi da Bill Gates za su je zubar da shara don yin amfani da kwamfuta. Bayan ya sauke karatu kuma ya sami cikakkiyar SAT na 1600, Allen ya tafi Jami'ar Jihar Washington, inda ya shiga Theta Kappa, wanda ya raba sha'awar kwamfutoci.
Harvard