Tax question about Education Deduction vs. Tax Credit

I'm doing someones taxes using software and I'm trying to figure something out. The person I'm doing taxes for had a significant amount of education expense which is documented on a 1098-T. I ran the numbers through the software. The person does significantly better with a tax deduction vs. a tax credit. I can't figure out if the person is permitted to claim the tax deduction or if they are forced into the credit. Does anybody know the answer to this?