Frequently asked questions
If your question is not here, ask it directly — we would rather answer it before you commit to anything.
What SWENGrad does
Can you guarantee I will be admitted?
No. Nobody can, and any consultancy that offers such a guarantee is making a promise it has no power to keep. Admission decisions are made solely by universities, applying their own criteria to a competitive pool of applicants.
What we can do is help you choose sensibly, understand what each programme is asking for, and submit an application that is complete and clearly argued.
Will you tell me my chances of getting in?
We will not put a number on it. Universities do not publish the information that would make such an estimate meaningful, and a confident-sounding percentage would be invented.
We will tell you plainly whether your profile appears to meet a programme's published minimum requirements, and where we think a particular application is a stretch — framed as our judgement, not as fact.
Do you have partnerships with universities?
No. SWENGrad holds no partnership, agency or representation agreement with any university, and receives no commission, referral fee or other benefit from any institution.
We are paid by the students we advise. That is what allows a recommendation to be based on your interests rather than on a recruitment relationship.
Will you write my motivation letter or CV for me?
No. You write your documents — personal statement, motivation letter, research proposal or CV — and we give you structured feedback on them. We do not draft, ghostwrite, rewrite or edit text into your application materials.
This is not us being unhelpful. Most universities treat submitted work that is not the applicant's own as a serious academic integrity breach, which can mean rejection or the withdrawal of an offer after it has been made.
Will you submit my applications for me?
No. You keep control of your own accounts and submit your own applications. Application portals require declarations that only you can properly make, and handing over login details to a third party breaches the terms of many of them.
We will help you build a submission schedule and check that everything is ready before you press send.
Can you help with visas or immigration?
No. Immigration is a legal matter that depends on your nationality and personal circumstances, and the rules change frequently. SWENGrad does not provide immigration or visa advice, and nothing on this website should be treated as such.
For those questions, consult the official immigration authority of the country concerned, its embassy or consulate, or a qualified immigration adviser.
Can you help me find scholarships or funding?
We can help you find and understand publicly advertised funding attached to the programmes on your shortlist, and make sure you do not miss a funding deadline.
We cannot secure funding, influence funding decisions, or offer financial advice. Scholarship decisions sit with the awarding body, exactly as admission decisions sit with the university.
Working together
How do fees work?
Fees depend on which services you need and over what period. They are explained during the initial consultation and agreed in writing before any work begins, so you are never asked to commit to a figure you have not seen.
We are paid only by the students we advise — never by a university.
What happens in the initial consultation?
It is a conversation about your academic background, the level you are applying at, what you want from studying abroad, and your timing. We explain how we work, what our services cover and what they cost.
There is no obligation to continue afterwards. If we think you do not need our help, or that what you need is outside our scope, we will say so.
Do I have to use all four services?
No. They can be taken together or individually, depending on where you are. Some applicants want help only with shortlisting; others have a shortlist already and want feedback on documents.
Which degree levels do you work with?
Bachelor's, Master's and PhD. The three work differently enough that it is worth saying how.
Bachelor's applications are the most centralised and the most deadline-driven — many countries run a single national round with a hard cut-off, and some programmes select by entrance examination or capped quota. The first question is usually whether your school-leaving qualification is recognised for university entry in that country.
Master's applications are more often handled by the institution, with deadlines varying between programmes at the same university, and subject prerequisites applied strictly.
PhD places across much of Europe are funded positions tied to a specific project or supervisor and are recruited much like employment. That changes what preparation is useful — research proposals, approaching supervisors, and responding to advertised positions rather than meeting one application deadline.
Will my school-leaving qualification be accepted for a Bachelor's?
That depends on the country, the institution and which qualification you hold, and it is one of the first things worth establishing — because it can determine whether an application is possible at all.
Where a qualification is not recognised as sufficient for direct entry, some countries require a preparatory or foundation year first. Recognition decisions are made by the university or the national recognition body, not by us. We can help you find the right body to ask and understand the answer you get.
Are consultations in person or online?
Consultations are conducted remotely, which means we can work with applicants wherever they are based and schedule around different time zones.
Which countries do you cover?
The countries we currently advise on are listed on the destinations page. That list reflects where we can give well-sourced guidance today, and it will grow.
If the country you are interested in is not listed, say so when you get in touch and we will tell you honestly whether we can help.
Your information
What information do you collect through this website?
This website has no contact form, no analytics and no cookies. It does not collect personal information from visitors, and there is no consent banner because there is nothing to consent to.
If you contact us directly, we hold what you send us in order to reply. The privacy notice sets this out in full.
Do you sell or share my personal information?
We do not sell personal information, and we do not pass it to universities or anyone else for marketing.
Running a business does require service providers — for example website hosting, email, and appointment booking — and information may be processed by those providers on our behalf where it is necessary to operate the service and respond to you. The privacy notice explains this and will name each provider once selected.
What do you do with my academic documents?
We use them only to advise you. We do not send your documents to universities — you submit your own applications — and we do not share them with third parties for any purpose beyond the service you have engaged us for.