S-T-A-Rting your

Chevening Essay-
writing Journey
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
 DISCLAIMER!
This presentation was prepared by Akhyar Dyni Zakyah as the author
in her personal capacity. The views and opinions expressed are those
of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or
position of the Chevening Secretariat, the Foreign, Commonwealth &
Development Office (FCDO), the British Embassy in Indonesia, and/or
the University of Nottingham.

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Table of contents

01 02
Brainstorming STAR
What to ask before you What is the STAR method
write and how to use it

03 04
Chevening Essays Writing Process
What are the Chevening How to decide which story
essays to tell

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

01
Brainstorming
The wise man doesn't give
the right answers,
he poses the right questions

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Ask yourself the
following questions
● Who am I?
● What is my passion?
● What problems do I
want to solve?
● How will I solve the
problem?
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
 01
Who am I 02
What is my passion
A lecturer
A dentist

03 Teaching dental students

Dental health education
What problems do I want to solve?
Time and money wasted by the government to eradicate dental health problems
04
Time and money wasted by the people from dental-related diseases How do I solve it
⇧
Indonesia’s dental health status worsens
⇧ Becoming a competent
Lack of competent dentists available to treat people
Time and money wasted by dental students dental educator with
⇧ international network to
Dental students don’t graduate on time
⇧ provide suitable national
No clear strategy to teach and measure students’ competence
⇧ policy in dental education
Lecturers can’t create the suitable curriculum for dental students
⇧
Lecturers in the dental faculty weren’t equipped with adequate knowledge and skill of
teaching

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 Branding
Create a continuous impression for the reader to remember you

How does it benefit the UK? Why?

1. Where do I see myself in 4.
5. What postgrad study should I take to
20 years? Why? achieve it? Why?
2. How can I achieve it? Why? 6. How does the Chevening experience
3. How does it benefit Indonesia? Why? contribute to it? Why?

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 In 20 years I will be... (1,2)

Head of AFDOKGI Head of Dentistry Division

Create national policy on
Create curriculum and faculty
curriculum and faculty
development policy
development in dental education

04 03 02 01

Academic Manager
Dean of Faculty
Dentistry Division
of Medicine
Create curriculum and faculty
Create curriculum and
development policy
faculty development policy
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
What are the benefits? (3,4)

Indonesia UK
Better dental health status in Indonesia
⇧ Provide more human resources to conduct
Provide more human resources to UK programs (MoU on Health Cooperation,
conduct government programs Human Resources for Health Development)
⇧ ⇧
Increasing dentist to people ratio Increasing the number of competent dentists
in Indonesia
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
What postgrad study? (5) Medical education

Nottingham Dundee Cardiff

Suitable syllabus Suitable syllabus Suitable syllabus
Internationally Internationally Known alumni
accredited accredited
Known alumni

Robinhood Scotland Castles

What Chevening get? What I get? (6)

Networking with lecturers and dentists Networking with the
UK programmes in dental health in alumni
Indonesia runs smoothly

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 02
STAR and
SMART method
Situation Specific
Task Measurable
Action Achievable
Result
Relevant
Time-bound

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Writing an essay
Supporting Elaboration
Main idea ideas Example of example
01 02 03 04

Intro 10% 50 words

Situation 10% 50 words
Task 10% X500 words 50 words
STAR structure Action 30% 150 words
Result 30% 150 words
Outro 10% 50 words

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Writing an essay
Supporting Elaboration
Main idea ideas Example of example
01 02 03 04

Intro 15% 75 words

SMART goal 1 25% 125 words
SMART structure SMART goal 2 25% X500 words 125 words
SMART goal 3 25% 125 words
Outro 10% 50 words

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 ● What was the ● What should be done
problem? about the problem?
● Where did it happen? ● What was the
● When did it happen? expected outcome?
● Why did it happen?

“Last year, I volunteered to “My main functions were to

chair a fundraising committee assign specific jobs to
for cancer research at my committee members, check
company to celebrate the on their progress, and help
cancer awareness month. We
establish and meet deadlines
were challenged to meet a
for obtaining donations in
fundraising goal of $10,000.”
order to achieve the
fundraising goal.”

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Examples are modified from https://www.topadmit.com/blog/tag/study-abroad/
● What did you do? ● What was the output?
● Why did you do it? ● What was the
● How did you do it? outcome?
● Was the problem
solved?

“I motivated the team by “My team convinced 25

having them meet recovering businesses and 18 individuals
cancer patients. I assigned to make donations, directly
tasks and checked in helping to raise $15,000 for
regularly, and successfully the organization and
mediated team disputes. I led exceeding our fundraising
the team to visit 20 local goal by 50%.”
businesses and ensured that
deadlines were met.”

Examples are modified from https://www.topadmit.com/blog/tag/study-abroad/ Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

In order for a goal to be effective, it needs to be specific.
A specific goal answers questions like:
• What needs to be accomplished?
• Who’s responsible for it?
• What steps need to be taken to achieve it?

Quantifying your goals (that is, making sure they’re

measurable) makes it easier to track progress and know
when you’ve reached the finish line.

Source: https://www.atlassian.com/blog/productivity/how-to-write-smart-goals
● This is the point in the process when you give yourself
a serious reality check. Goals should be realistic. Ask
yourself: is your objective something you can
reasonably accomplish?

● Here’s where you need to think about the big picture.

Why are you setting the goal that you’re setting?

Source: https://www.atlassian.com/blog/productivity/how-to-write-smart-goals
 ● To properly measure success, you need to be sure
about when a goal has been reached. What’s your time
horizon? When will you start creating and implementing
the tasks you’ve identified? When will you finish?

FILL IN THE BLANKS

My goal is _____. I will track my progress by _____. I will achieve this

goal by doing the following _____ and _____. This goal helps me
because _____, _____, and _____. By achieving this goal, the outcome
will cause _____ for _____. I will complete this goal by _____.
Source: https://www.atlassian.com/blog/productivity/how-to-write-smart-goals
SMART goal example
My goal is to become head of marketing within my organization, so that I can build my
career and lead a successful team.. I will track my progress by completing the
necessary training courses and gaining the relevant experience. I will achieve this goal
by doing the following take a master’s degree in Strategic Marketing Management at
UCL and expand my networking and leadership skill by utilizing the Chevening events.
This goal helps me because the opportunity to study at one of the world’s leading
university will surely broaden my horizon and equip me with adequate marketing,
leadership and networking skills necessary for the future. By achieving this goal, the
outcome will cause an increase in productivity for my company, and since the company
I work at focused on the empowerment of small enterprises, the outcome will increase
the number of empowered small enterprises in Indonesia. I will complete this goal by
year 5 after my master’s graduation.
 03
Chevening
Essays
This year’s writing prompt:
• Leadership and Influence
• Relationship-building and shared learning
• Study plan
• Career Plan
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
 Leadership and Influence
Chevening is looking for individuals who will be future leaders or influencers in their home countries.
Explain how you meet this requirement, using clear examples of your own leadership and influencing
skills to support your answer.

● Recent ● Show
● Result-oriented/problem-solving ● Individual contribution
● Focus ● Lesson learnt

● In the past ● Tell

● Situation-oriented/narrative ● Team/collective
● Too many stories ● No lesson learnt

Result must be concrete, not abstract.

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
Quantitative not qualitative
 Relationship-building and shared learning
Chevening is looking for individuals with strong professional relationship-building skills, who will engage
with the Chevening community and influence and lead others in their chosen profession. Please explain
how you build and maintain relationships in a professional capacity, using clear examples of how you
currently do this, and outline how you hope to use these skills in the future.

● Problem-solving ● Professional

● Maintain the relationship ● Pay it forward

● Name-dropping ● Familial
● Don’t maintain the relationship ● Keep it to oneself

Result must be concrete, not abstract.

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah Quantitative not qualitative
 Studying in the UK
Outline why you have selected your chosen three university courses and explain how this relates to your
previous academic or professional experience and your plans for the future. Please enter new
information and examples here and not duplicate the information you have entered on the work
experience and education section of this form

● Problem-solving for the community ● Focus

● Align with career plan ● Sightseeing and leisure activity

● Syllabus, professors, quality ● Why UK

● For personal gain ● Diverse

● Doesn’t align with career plan ● Only studying
● Reputation only ● Not specific in the UK

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 Career Plan
Chevening is looking for individuals who have a clear post-study career plan. Please outline your
immediate plans upon returning home and your longer-term career goals. You may wish to consider
how these relate to what the UK government is doing in your country.

● Problem-solving ● Professional
● 20, 10, 5 years, right after graduation ● Foster UK-INA relation
● Clear path ● Dream BIG reasonably

● No problem-solving ● Academic
● Right after graduation and 5 years ● Has no relation to UK’s interest
● Diverse unclear path ● Small and unreasonable

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 04
Writing Process
Your own journey,
never do it alone
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
 The process
Discuss about who
you are and where Discuss about the Create and Create and
do you see yourself supporting discuss the outline discuss your Revise and finalize
in the future evidences of your essays essays your essays

Branding Proofing Outlining Writing Revising

01 02 03 04 05

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

 Branding “A cybersecurity expert
who will eradicate hackers’
safe haven in Nigeria
through digital education”
Professional Dream
“A sports nutritionist who
capacity Impact to be made will take Indonesia’s
football team to the World
Current profession/ Cup through dietary
workplace/ education enhancement”

“An HSE expert who

provides safe and
Future Simplicity sustainable oil and gas
production in Indonesia”
Goal to be achieved No more than three “An urban developer
attributes saving the marginalized
people from climate
change”
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
Proofing
Provide supporting evidences for all essays

01 02
Leadership Relationship building
PAST Impact from solving Impact from maintaining and
problems related to your using your network to solve
branding problems, pay it forward

03 04
Study in UK Career Plan
FUTURE Three courses that suites Your position after 20, 10, 5
you the best and why years and how that
correlates with UK’s plan in
Indonesia
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
 Outlining Make one for each essay, use only “keywords and phrases”

Leadership Relationship-building

● Intro: public figure, meaning, impact ● Intro: maintain relationship now

● Situation: problem ● Situation: problem

● Task: to do ● Task: to do

● Action: what you did and how, what
examples of leadership skill you
show
● Result: output and outcome
● Outro: how Chevening help your
leadership skill
● Action: who help you, how did you
meet, how you maintain relationship
● Result: output and outcome
● Outro: how you maintain
relationship with Chevening, how
you will give back

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Oversea Academy
2021
 Outlining Make one for each essay, use only “keywords and phrases”

Study in UK Career plan

● Intro: problem to solve in Indonesia,
how studying in the UK solve it, what
impact to expect
● Paragraph 1, 2, 3: course you choose,
why that course, why that city, what to
do in that city besides studying
● Intro: what UK’s plan that aligns with your
career, problem to solve in Indonesia, how
your position solve it, what impact to
expect
● Par. 1: right after graduation and 5 years,
position – power – impact and how to
achieve

● Outro: why must UK, what UK’s plan ● Par. 2: 10 years, position – power – impact
alignment with them and how to achieve
● Par. 3: 20 years, position – power – impact
and how to achieve

● Outro: benefits of Chevening scholarship if

you achieved the position/job
Akhyar Dyni Zakyah
Oversea Academy
2021
 Writing and Revising
Ask your friends
Read it out loud, for input,
Develop the outline mark parts that preferably outside
Write as much as are unclear/ your field for the
you want, no redundant/ minimum of 3 Revise and finalize
stopping pointless Revise people your essays

01 02 03 04 05

START WRITING IN BAHASA INDONESIA FIRST, THEN TRANSLATE TO ENGLISH,

TO AVOID ‘LOST IN TRANSLATION’

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Oversea Academy
2021
 Pro tips
● Correct grammar & British
English
● No bullet points
● Make it really simple
● Take your time
● Have faith in yourself

Akhyar Dyni Zakyah

Oversea Academy
2021
Other resources that I used while writing my essays
● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvucMoWAj6w

● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fP8_1uoNQlE

● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNB0QbyKxeA

● https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/my-application-for-chevening-scholarship/

● http://indonesiamengglobal.com/2015/12/essay-on-chevening-scholarships-part-2-networking-engagement-
influence-leadership/

● https://higheredrevolution.com/my-chevening-examples-799bae38ed59

● https://medium.com/@chngo13/how-i-won-the-chevening-scholarship-and-how-you-can-too-part-2-writing-
your-essays-4485d15f83fe

● https://laurensiairma.wordpress.com/2019/10/29/breakdown-chevening-questions/

● https://www.chevening.org/news/reading-committee-feedback-for-applicants/
 See
you
in UK
Thanks! Do you have any
questions?
Find me on Instagram
@drg.adyniz
Goodluck with
your application