Scholarship Terms & Conditions
Effective August 27, 2026
These Terms & Conditions govern the Matter to Matter Scholarship, a monthly award offered by Matter. They apply to the scholarship only. Matter’s tutoring services are governed separately by Matter’s Terms of Service. By submitting a scholarship application, you agree to these Terms.
1
Eligibility
To apply, you must: (a) be either (i) a citizen or permanent resident of the United States or Canada, or (ii) the holder of a valid F1 I-20 or J1 DS-2019 visa for the United States or Canada, in each case on the date of scholarship selection; (b) be enrolled or registered at an accredited elementary school, middle school, high school, community college, university, or graduate school for the current or upcoming semester or quarter; and (c) have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0, or its equivalent, or higher for the current or previous academic year.
Employees of Matter and their immediate family members are not eligible to apply.
2
How to Apply
Applications are accepted only through the scholarship application form at matter.education/scholarship. No other method of submission is accepted. You may submit one application per month. Applying is free. No purchase, payment, or use of Matter’s tutoring services is required at any point, and applicants are never asked to promote Matter or the scholarship.
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Essay Requirements
Your application must include an original written essay of 300 to 600 words responding to this prompt: What’s something you taught yourself, and why? Tell us about a skill, subject, or idea you pursued on your own, outside of school. What pulled you in? Walk us through one specific moment where it got hard, and what you did about it. What’s changed, either for you or someone else, because you stuck with it?
You may include a link inside your essay to something that supports it, such as a photo, a blog post, a social account, a screenshot, or a video of a finished project. That link is optional and is not scored on its own.
Your essay must be written in English, must be your own original work, and must be written without the assistance of artificial intelligence. Submit it in Microsoft Word or PDF format.
4
Deadline
To be considered for a given month’s award, your application must be uploaded by 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the 20th of that month. Applications received after that time are considered for the following month.
5
Selection and Judging
Every essay received by the deadline is read by a review panel made up of Matter’s Director and Matter tutors. The panel evaluates each essay on three criteria: how specific and credible the account of self-teaching is, what the writer did when the work became difficult, and what changed for the writer or for someone else as a result. Writing quality is considered, but professional polish is not required and is not rewarded on its own.
One recipient is selected on the 25th of each month. All decisions of the panel are final.
6
Notification and Acceptance
The selected recipient is notified by email at the address given on the application. You must confirm acceptance by return email within five (5) days of the date of that email. If no response is received within five (5) days, another recipient will be selected. Applicants who are not selected are not notified.
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The Award and How It Is Paid
The award is a one-time scholarship of $300. It is intended for school-related costs such as tuition, mandatory fees, textbooks, and on-campus room and board. Scholarship funds are provided by Matter.
After the recipient confirms acceptance and Matter verifies eligibility, Matter mails a check for the full award amount directly to the recipient. Funds are not sent to the recipient’s school. Checks are issued within thirty (30) days of the recipient’s confirmation of acceptance.
Recipients are responsible for any tax consequences of the award, and for reporting the award to their school’s financial aid office where the school requires it.
8
Publicity and Use of Your Essay
Matter publishes its recipients on the scholarship page. If you are selected, you grant Matter permission to publish your essay, in whole or in part, together with your first name, last initial, and city and state, on the Matter website and in Matter’s own communications. Matter will not publish your full last name, street address, email address, phone number, or school name.
You keep ownership of your essay. Matter does not claim ownership of your work, and does not publish essays from applicants who are not selected. Information you provide is used only to administer the scholarship and to announce the recipient, and is handled in line with Matter’s Privacy Policy.
If you are selected and would rather your essay not be published, tell us when you accept the award. The award is issued either way.
9
Applicant Representations
By applying you represent and warrant that: (a) all information in your application is true, accurate, current, and complete; (b) the essay is your own original work, written without the assistance of artificial intelligence; (c) if you are under thirteen (13) years old, a parent or legal guardian has reviewed these Terms and consented to your application and to the submission of your information; and (d) your application for, or receipt of, the award does not violate any law or regulation that applies to you.
If you provide information that is untrue, inaccurate, or incomplete, Matter may disqualify the application and decline future applications from you.
10
Limitation of Liability
Matter is not responsible for technical problems, delays, or failures in the application process, including network, hardware, or software errors, or for applications that are lost, late, incomplete, or misdirected. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Matter is not liable for any loss, damage, or injury arising from your application for, or receipt of, the scholarship.
11
Changes to the Scholarship
Matter may modify these Terms, or suspend or cancel the scholarship, at any time. A change takes effect when it is posted on this page. The version posted on the day your application is submitted is the version that applies to that application.
12
Governing Law
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict of law rules. The scholarship is void where prohibited by law.
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Contact
Questions about the scholarship or these Terms can be sent to scholarship@matter.education, or by mail to Matter, 8605 Santa Monica Blvd PMB 733977, West Hollywood, CA 90069-4109.