Who is a degree candidate? College freshman receiving grants and scholarship.?

He is a degree candidate. A degree candidate is someone who attends college for years in order to eventually graduate and receive a diploma and a PhD, AA, AS, BS, BA, MBA, etc. (Most "real" college students are degree candidates; an example of someone who is not a degree candidate is someone with a job who takes a few cles that are work-related, but does not intend to graduate; another example of someone who is not a degree candidate is someone, with or without a job, who takes only one cl, and does so because they find the subject interesting, not for educational reasons.)