Chevening scholarship is one of the most prestigious scholarships for international students with leadership qualities to study for one-year postgraduate courses in any subject at any UK university. Chevening scholars get to participate in exclusive events and training; meet, and build a global network with like-minded people from around the world. Most importantly you don't have to worry about your tuition fee, travel, and accommodation to stay in the UK, it is taken care of by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office and its partner organizations.

Applications for Chevening scholarship usually start in August and end in November each year and around 1,500 scholarships are awarded every year. The process of choosing Chevening scholars takes more than 6 months from the application deadline date till the applicants are conditionally selected for a scholarship.

This article is for applicants who are planning for this scholarship and are unsure of where to begin, what to do as it can be sometimes overwhelming. So we'll walk you through the process involved, Chevening scholarship requirements, eligibility, and so on.

Criteria for the Chevening scholarship eligibility 

Things to keep in mind before you apply for the Chevening scholarship or else your application will be deemed ineligible.

  • You must have received an unconditional admission offer from a UK university.
  • You must be a citizen of a Chevening eligible country (160+ countries) and territory.
  • You must return back to your country of citizenship for a minimum of 2 years after completion of your program.
  • You must have completed all components of an undergraduate degree by the time you submit your application.
  • You must have at least 2 years of full-time work experience (equivalent to 2,800 hours).

Application instruction

If your profile fulfills the Chevening scholarship eligibility criteria then you can apply online from the Chevening website by clicking apply on the top right corner. Applications for Chevening scholarships 2023 for intake season August-September 2024 will open in August 2023. It is the same for all the Chevening-eligible countries, the date may vary a day or two because of the different time zones.

  1. This is round one i.e online application stage where you need to upload your details which will be about yourself, your past academics, and your past employment.
  2. Your Chevening application must list three courses (preference wise) and they must be from the courses that are eligible for a Chevening scholarship. You need to apply for your courses separately to universities to get an unconditional offer letter.
  3. Your application requires you to upload the names and contact details of your two references. Referees should be known to you, either in an academic or professional capacity. They should not be a relative or close personal friends. 

  4. Then comes the most important part where you are required to write four essays of around 500 words each. These four essays will put forth your chances of making it to round two. The topics for these essays are about- 

    • Leadership - You need to describe experiences of your past where you've shown the ability of leadership whether during academics or professionally and how you can expand that leadership potential with the Chevening scholarship.
    • Networking - Given that this is an international scholarship program and you will be meeting with scholars from around the globe, you'll need to write about your networking skills on the ability to make friends, bring people together, etc.
    • Study in the UK- In this you need to write mostly about why you've chosen to pursue your masters in the UK? Why have you chosen these three specific courses? Why pursue these courses from the UK? Why now?
    • Future plans- Here you need to write about your future short-term, mid-term, and long-term plans after you complete the course. How will you use the opportunity, advantages, and learning to help your country or a community after returning from the UK to your home country?

So be specific while writing these essays about who you are, what are your plans and goals, what is it that you want to achieve with the Chevening scholarship and one-year master's in the UK, and so on.

Interviews 

Once submitted, your application undergoes an electronic sift against eligibility criteria. Any applications deemed unsuitable or don't fulfill the Chevening scholarship requirements will be removed from the selection process. Then independent reading committees assess all eligible applications. Their scores and rankings are then passed back to the British embassy/high commission. Once the embassy/high commission has reviewed the applications, they compose a shortlist of those who they will invite for an interview. And this process takes 2-3 months. 

  • The interview will be conducted in English.
  • Interview questions will cover personal and professional goals.

Interview slots are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis, and once you have booked a slot, it cannot be changed. Due to the pandemic, face-to-face interviews may not be possible for everyone this year. If you are unable to attend an interview in person, Skype interviews will be permitted, and applicants will be informed in their invitation email if their interview can be conducted via Skype.

Before the interview, you are required to submit two references and education documents. Your reference letters from your referees should cover the following:

  1. Your contact details like address, email id, and phone number.
  2. Since when have you known each other?
  3. In what capacity do your referees know you? (e.g. educational, professional, voluntary, supervisory, religious, etc.)
  4. When did your referees last have regular contact with you?
  5. A brief overall endorsement of you, including your:
    • Skills in leadership and networking.
    • Personal, intellectual, and interpersonal qualities.
    • Ability to complete a demanding academic program in the UK.

These references are examined by the High Commission/British embassy during the latter stages of the selection, so provide only relevant details, written in English only.

Results announcement

Interview results are announced from early June onwards. You get the deadline till mid-July to receive and submit at least one unconditional offer letter from any UK university, And then you become a Chevening scholar and enter into an international network that you'll be a part of for the rest of your lives!

Alternatives 

The reality is Chevening Scholarships are very competitive and around 1,500 scholarships are awarded worldwide and India gets some 30+ Scholarships only. And applications for Chevening Scholarships 2023 /2023 were already closed last year in November. And those who don't have two years of work experience won't clear Chevening scholarship requirements for 2023 / 2024 intake.

You can still opt for an abroad education loan and can make it to your dream UK university. Getting an education loan is fast, reliable and a sure-shot ticket to your study abroad. And WeMakeScholars can help you in getting an education loan. We try our best to get students the best deal they can get. So do reach out to our Financial officers by requesting a callback. Our team of Financial officers assists you with the entire education loan process until sanction, disbursement, and beyond. 

Note: WeMakeScholars is an organization funded and supported by the Government of India that focuses on International Education finance. We are associated with 10+ public/Pvt banks/ NBFCs in India and help you get the best abroad education loan matching your profile. As this initiative is under the Digital India campaign, it's free of cost. The organization has vast experience dealing with students going to various abroad education destinations like the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Germany, Sweden, Italy, France among others.