Work experience

You must have at least 2800 hours of work experience, acquired after the completion of your undergraduate degree.

This is roughly equivalent to two years of full-time work, based on a 35-hour work week, but may have been completed in a different time period.

If you graduated after October 2023, you won’t be eligible, as there wouldn’t have been enough time to complete the required hours, and demonstrate your commitment to your field, before the application deadline.

If you do not have the required level of work experience, your application will be rejected.

Eligible types of work experience

The types of work experience that are eligible for Chevening can include:

• Full-time employment
• Part-time employment
• Voluntary work
• Paid or unpaid internships

You can submit up to fifteen different employment periods in order to meet the requirement.

If you are currently employed, you do not need to resign from your position in order to submit a Chevening application. You are advised to discuss your application with your employer and it is your responsibility to ensure that they will release you if you are selected for a Chevening Scholarship. Please encourage your employer to read about how they could benefit from supporting your time away.

How to calculate your work experience

Your entries will be calculated automatically by multiplying the number of weeks worked by the number of hours worked per week.

You are assessed against the strength of your examples demonstrating your skills, which often develops with broader or more varied work experience.