How to actually read a scholarship's eligibility criteria

Scholarship eligibility notices are often written for the funder's legal team, not for you. That means the details that actually matter — nationality restrictions, degree-level cutoffs, discipline limits — are sometimes buried in language that sounds broader or narrower than it actually is.

Three things to check every time, regardless of what any tool (including GradsHQ) tells you: whether your specific citizenship (not residence) qualifies, whether the funding covers the degree level you're actually applying for, and whether the deadline is for the scholarship itself or tied to a programme application deadline you might miss first.

An eligibility alignment score is there to save you time scanning options that clearly don't apply — it's a filter, not a verdict. Always confirm the specifics on the funder's own page before you build an application around a scholarship.