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I have applied to study at a UK university for a taught masters starting in 2017 September. I also obtained an unconditional offer from one university. They have mentioned to reply to the offer within two weeks. But, I would like to wait till I hear from other universities. Can I request from this university to give me more time to make the decision as I have applied for 2017 course and there's a lot of time till 2017 September?.

I also intend to apply for the Commonwealth scholarship for Master's and PhD study for developing commonwealth country citizens. In the scholarship guidelines it is mentioned that

You must take the necessary steps to secure admission to your preferred universities in advance of your scholarship application.

Does this mean I have to accept the offer at a university to apply to the commonwealth scholarship or I should only have been offered a place at a university before I apply. Because in the commonwealth application I can state up to 3 universities. But I can only accept 1 offer right? So, I think I only have to have an offer from university. Is this correct?

Also, is there a way I can delay accepting the offer until I get a decision from the commonwealth scheme. I believe the decisions in commonwealth sholarships are made in around 2017 April. So can I delay that long (From 2016 August to 2017 April) to make my decision on the offer? Do I have to pay tuition fees to accept the offer?

I would be extremely grateful if someone with experience regarding these can give me some advice on these issues.

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    You can always request more time, but you might not get it...
    – Nate Eldredge
    Commented Aug 14, 2016 at 5:27
  • If you don't accept the place they want to offer it to someone else, who presumably has their own scholarship application issues. The longer the university keeps the place open for you, without your commitment, the more of the alternative students will have accepted elsewhere.
    – Patricia Shanahan
    Commented Aug 14, 2016 at 7:15
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    And yes, you do have to accept the position before applying for the scholarships, which is silly on one hand, but makes sense on the other.
    – la femme cosmique
    Commented Aug 14, 2016 at 8:22

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It is not wrong to request for more time to make your decision. But, as @Nate pointed out, you may not always be granted what you request for.

If you do not receive the time you ask for, then it is a gamble you may choose to make or decide to play it safe. Many go through this sort of situation.

There is however another option. If you can't postpone your decision for the first institution, you could try preponing the your offer result of the other institution. Give a kind request to know your status of the application to the other institution to be in a position to decide earlier. This is also just a request, however it is still worth a try.

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