Scholarship / Networking is all about connecting people with meaningful ideas for growth--Chevening scholarship. [5]

experience in the UK

This is my Networking Essay for Chevening scholarship, Please help me review, so i can proper adjustment where needed . Thanks in anticipation

National youth service corps (N.Y.S.C) is a one year graduate program organised by Nigerian government where graduates are posted to different states they have never been before. This is aimed at inculcating oneness among Nigerian youths irrespective of social and cultural background. I was posted to an educational group in Markudi, Benue state, which consisted of over 300 members just meeting each other for the first time. After actively participating in this group, an election was conducted which I emerged as the president.

Now, dealing with the group was daunting for me at the start of my tenure, because of its versed diversities in terms of believes, mind-sets and perspectives. I had a vision of positively influencing the education sector of the host community. But before I could accomplish this, I needed to first, make the group a unified whole. I started by organizing seminars on crucial topics that affects youth post-service. This seminars includes: How to accurately construct a Curriculum Vitae, how to write cover/application letters, how to prepare for interviews and how to answer some frequently asked interview questions. I organized a mock job interview just to give them a feel of what job interviews can be like. I also tutored them on how to make achievable goals using the S.M.A.R.T.E.R approach and also how to answer interview behavioral based questions using the S.T.A.R approach. Furthermore, I invited a health professional who educated the group on various health topics: Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation, Heimlich man-oeuvre and breast feeding etc. All these activities gripped their interests and eventually made the segregated group coalesce into unified whole. By the end my tenure, I have connected everyone with meaningful ideas that prepares them for the foreseeable future. This birthed a meaningful relationship between me and my group and also gave me opportunities to work with governmental departments, community leaders and experts from various organisations. The relationship created, laid the foundation that helped me organise sensitizations and scholarships for the host community which over 1000 students benefited and also has profited me greatly in terms receiving professional advice and recommendation letters.

I believe developing a meaningful and inspiring relationship with people is all there about networking. Just as Michelle Janae said, Networking is not about connecting people with people, it's about connecting people with meaningful ideas and opportunities for growth. Till this day, I still receive texts and calls from my ex-members thanking me for the impact I made in their lives and calls to tell me about job openings and sometimes calls to seek my advice about their future endeavors.

My experience in the United Kingdom will greatly influence my networking and leadership skills because of the country's versed multi-cultural background and I will be privileged with the opportunity of meeting other excellent Chevening scholars that can positively impact my life with their first-hand experience and knowledge. I will actively participate in Nigerian Chevening Alumni Association to strengthen relationships among the United Kingdom, alumni and prospective scholars.