If there was one thing I was going to do when I set out to apply for the Chevening Scholarship was to be true to myself. Why was I applying? What was my goal? Do I have a story? Was it to japa? (Nigerian language for leaving the country in search of greener pasture), Was it to boast about having a funded master’s programme in the UK? Was it because it was fully funded? Was it because I deserved it? Or was it for a cause bigger than myself, higher than a master’s programme, nobler than merely deserving. I knew it was hardly for myself as much as for the people it was to impact. And that was the foundation of my application.
Here’s the thing about the people that vet our essays, they can sense these things. They are trained to see through your words and get a feel of what you actually want. Because words communicate so much more than what was merely written. That plays a role on who gets selected to the next stage; the interview stage. Therefore if you are thinking of getting someone else to write the essay for you, sorry but it won’t take you anywhere. Originality is key.
Chevening scholarship has been training leaders who have excelled in various fields for 40 years. Surely it is a given that they want to maintain and even build on that image, it goes without saying that the competition will be real, the selection process will be rigorous, and the cohorts will be of the best clothes.
There are many advantages to this scholarship but in all honesty it would have been just like any other scholarship if not because of its familial nature. “Once a Chevener, always a Chevener”. As a scholar you will attend events with other scholars at your UK High Commission or Embassy to your country and vice versa. You will also attend the Chevening Summit with your entire cohort in London as well volunteer programmes, community services and many more. After the programme, you will be a part of the Alumni association where you pay it forward by mentoring prospective scholars, participating in community service, attending and contributing to programmes and generally being a leader and a good ambassador of Chevening. The networking opportunities and possibilities of what may come out of it are tremendous. Imagine being among the best of the best, the ones who say ‘what’, and knowing you are one of them and you can utilize that connection to further your goals. Smells like limitless possibilities to me.
Now that I have carved out that foundation, let’s get right into the application process. The Chevening timeline usually starts from August when the portal opens to June/July when the finalists are announced and YOU BECOME A CHEVENER FOR LIFE!
Are you ready to be true to yourself?
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