Greetings to all LL.M Guide members.

I know that this topic has been raised on numerous occasions, however, there are several questions that still bother me that I would like to clarify.

I am a Russian citizen and obtained an LL.B degree in International Law (specialised in Administrative & Finanacial Law). I'm currently working in a Big 4 company in an international tax department, having previously completed their internship program. So by the time I'm planning to start my prospective LL.M, I will have had a 1-year working experience in the field.

The issue I've met while researching the IT LL.M market was that a large number of programs were Advanced Master's, therefore are actually designed for those who've already obtained an LL.M. In particular, Amsterdam and Leiden seemed to be my primary choice, whereas now I realise that I'm currently ineligble for these courses.

As the rest of the programs left for me are not as evidently good and prestigious to be so certain of (I'm not stating that they are worse, they are just less talked of in Russia), I decided to ask on this forum the opinion on the programs I'm now considering to apply at. These are:

- Vienna University of Economics and Business - International Tax Law (I know that this one is also particularly good with P. Baker and the likes teaching there)
- Tilburg University - International Business Tax Law
- Maastricht University - International & European Tax Law

I seem to meet the requirements for all of these programs. My question is which of the three seems to be better in terms of teaching, future career prospects, theory/practice ratio (I prefer practice), which is more applicable in practical field (i.e. which is better for future work in Tax consulting rather than for further scientific research)?

Also could you tell me about some other International Tax LL.M programs I seem to be eligble for that are worth considering? Like the one in ETC, for instance (I didn't really get what the ETC programm is and how good it is)?

And a bit off topic - how high are the chances for a non-EU citizen to stay in EU working for, e.g. Big 4 after getting a LL.M in International Tax (and which of the mentioned unis seem to be giving a higher chance for it)?

If you have any additional commentaries that do not directly answer any of the questions above - feel free to give them as I'm looking for any practical info. I really want to make the right choice.

Thank you for your answers in advance!