Q. Is the scholarship he received income for Mass?
A. No, unless he performed some service for the grant.* Taxable scholarship, for a non resident is deemed to be sourced in the student's home state.
Q. Do I need to do a Massachusetts return?
A. No, not based on the scholarship income.
*"Scholarship or fellowship grants not requiring the rendition of services should also not be deemed Massachusetts source income as no trade or business is involved"
Reference: https://sfs.harvard.edu/filing-massachusetts-state-taxes
