This is the exact position I am in. I am Nigerian, and was accepted to the MIDS 2019/2020 programme on 20 February 2019. However, I did not get the Young-ICCA scholarship or any other scholarship at all. I was also accepted to the White and Case LLM in International Commercial Arbitration at the University of Miami. I was awarded a $10,000 scholarship for this program.Congratulations on the offer, Fitzmaurice and fingers crossed for the MIDS-Young ICCA Scholarship.
I understand that GKK's retirement is a big factor but it's hardly surprising that Gaillard (LLM in TADS, Sciences Po) and Paulsson (W&C Int'l Arb LLM, UMiami) left to develop their own programmes.
However, it is my understanding is that the supply still exceeds the demand, by a fairly high margin. The MIDS is still the most competitive of all specialised programmes but I think what has affected the programme in the recent years is the number of scholarships they were able to offer (HW Foundation, which has been supporting MIDS since its inception in 2008, has stopped sponsoring). This has gravely affected the quality of students, with many offer-holders in the first list (without financial aid) reconsidering if they should self-finance their studies in Geneva or look for an alternative school offering some form of financial aid.
However, even with the scholarship, Miami's tuition is still almost twice that of the MIDS, and I don't have funds for either programs. I am trying to negotiate an increased scholarship with Miami and if this works out, I will have to withdraw from the MIDS programme. If it doesn't, well...I am trusting God for a breakthrough in terms of funding for the MIDS.
Nevertheless, MIDS will always be my preferred option. GKK may have retired and Jan Paulson and Gaillard may have left, but MIDS has brought in George Bermann from Columbia Law who is highly respected. They also have Albert Jan Van den Berg, another leading authority in international arbitration. So I don't think the 2019/2020 faculty is boring.
[Edited by Chizzy on Apr 16, 2019]
