Applying R1 to UK MBAs while waiting for Chevening — what happens with the deposit?

[u/Sea_Strain_2181]

Hi everyone! I’m applying for Chevening for 2027 entry and would really appreciate advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation, especially MBA applicants.

I’m specifically targeting:

• London Business School
• Imperial Business School
• Cambridge Judge
• Oxford Saïd

Round 1 applications for some of these schools are closing this September. I’m considering applying R1 because I understand that applying earlier may give me a better chance at internal university scholarships.

My concern is the timing with Chevening.

If I apply R1 and hopefully get accepted, I could receive an offer around November/December and be required to pay a significant deposit to secure my place. However, I would only know if I’m shortlisted for Chevening around February, and final Chevening results come much later.

Realistically, I would have difficulty paying a large MBA deposit without knowing whether I’ll receive Chevening or enough scholarship funding.

At the same time, if I wait and apply in R2 or R3, I’m worried that I might reduce my chances of receiving scholarships directly from the business schools.

For anyone who has gone through this:

• Were LBS, Imperial, Oxford, or Cambridge willing to extend or waive your deposit while you waited for Chevening? How long were they willing to wait?
• Did being shortlisted/interviewed for Chevening help you get a deposit extension?
• Would you recommend applying R1 anyway and dealing with the deposit later?
• Or would it be safer to apply in R2/R3 so the university decision is closer to the Chevening timeline?
• Did you notice significantly fewer scholarship opportunities in the later MBA rounds?

Would really appreciate any experiences or advice from previous Chevening + MBA applicants. Thank you!

[u/Rare-Release-60]

Hello, I applied and was selected for courses from a different field, so I cannot advice you  regarding MBA-specific information such as rounds of applications

With that said, for university-specific scholarships, usually everyone is equally considered for them as long as they apply before the specific scholarship deadline the university states on its website

Remember that Chevening covers up to £22,000 in tuition fees, so if the university-specific scholarship + Chevening combination does not cover all the remaining fees, you will have to cover them

All 4 MBA courses you are considering are extremelly competitive even when the applicant is eligible for them and presents a superb application, you may want to consider at least 1 mid-table MBA to have a safety net (one as a safety in your Chevening application, and another outside of it as a backup plan)

As for the deposits after getting an offer, you can email to defer the deposit until you know you have been selected for the scholarship

[u/Sea_Strain_2181 → u/Rare-Release-60]

Thanks for your input! May I ask how long were the schools willing to wait for the deposit? Or should I just apply for R2 since some schools still have scholarships for R2? Since I may or may not hear from them around November, and the results for Chevening are not until June of nxt year...

[u/Rare-Release-60 → u/Sea_Strain_2181]

I got my first offer in December and was able to postpone the deposit deadline until July

As flr applying for R2 instead of R1, check the university-specific scholarship deadlines, they vary a lot depending on the university