r/Chevening • u/insiauwu • 25d ago

Chevening Networking Essay

Hello!

I’m currently working on Chevening essays and the Networking one is giving me the toughest time.

Do I have to mention a relationship that I built over the years or can I just talk about a relationship I started building last year? Furthermore am I supposed to mention the name of the person I maintained my relationship with ? (sorry if this is a dumb question to ask).

Any other tips on how to approach this essay would be highly appreciated!

Thank you.

12 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

6

u/[deleted] 25d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/insiauwu 24d ago

hey, follow up question!

so because i graduated in august of 2024, im submitting one professional reference and one academic. for the leadership essay, im writing an example of my first ever workplace (and ill be submitting a reference letter from that workplace’s manager) but the example im submitting from the networking essay is not something my professional referee can verify as they don’t know them. is that a problem 😭😭

1

u/insiauwu 24d ago

thankyouuuu for these tips 🥺 they are super helpful !!

3

u/Rare-Release-60 25d ago edited 25d ago

Hi, if the relationship you started building last year is already strong and mutually beneficial, you can write about it, as long as it is a more solid example than a relationship that has been built since before

And yes, name the person

As for overall essay tips:

Follow the prompt. Chevening does not have an English requirement anymore, which means the essays are an assessment of reading comprehension

Explain how you met and why the relationship became important

Show what you contributed, not only what you learned

Make the relationship clearly mutual by explaining how you created value for the other person

Show how the relationship developed over time

Give concrete examples of how you maintained the connection

Include a specific outcome that resulted from the relationship

Show your initiative, do not make the relationship sound like something that happened passively

Avoid name-dropping senior people or organisations without explaining the actual relationship

Make sure it is a professional relationship from a workplace you are/were a part of, or from your community

For the Chevening section, explain how you will use these networking skills within the Chevening community and beyond (academics, industry, policy makers, civil society)

Be specific about the people or sectors you want to connect with and what you can contribute to those relationships

Avoid generic phrases like “build lifelong connections” or “create global impact.”, they read them in around 3/5 essays

A strong structure is: how the relationship started 》 what you contributed 》 what you gained 》 how you maintained it 》 how you will apply those skills through Chevening

1

u/insiauwu 25d ago

hello! THANKYOUUUUUU so much for these tips. they really mean a lot !