Hi,

I cannot really decide where to go for my LLM in international commercial law.

Luckily, I got unconditional offers from King's College London, Queen Mary London, Kent, Essex, Edinburgh - and from the University of Hong Kong.

Considering solely the location, I would probably prefer HK, because imo it has to be an amazing and unique experience to spend a year so far away from Europe in the heart of Asia, but I am not sure about the reputations of the aforementioned institutions. According to most rankings HKU is ranked highest, e.g. the Times Higher Education (worldwide): HK 21st, Ed. 40th and KCL 77th. Can this really be true, especially when it comes to the respective LLM programmes?

What do you think? I am thankful for any suggestion.

Thx in advance

What is going on, I cannot edit this post nore see the one answer...

That is because there were no other answers!
I agree that HKU would be an amazing experience. I am not really sure what you are looking for in your LLM. For straight commercial law, many of the classes would not be international per se with the exception of International Commercial Arbitration or courses on International Investment law. Commerical law is a private law subject generally and therefore on the international level governed by a treaty or (depending on subject matter) another form of agreement. If you are talking straight business, then the commercial classes you are seeking will most likely be delivered in the law of the jurisdiction where you are, though for the UK these are largely the same wherever you are (ie: between Scotland, England and Wales). You should look into the programmes and examine the courses on offer and see which ones best suit your needs and how the two different levels interrelate from a curriculum point of view. Rankings, I have found, are rarely indicative of actual education you will receive as they are based on many things.
Best of luck.

Hm, I got an email notification about an answer from the user glau912, but I couldn't see the post. Maybe it was already deleted...

But thank you very much indeed for your reply EDIpostgrad! I would be quite satisfied with the courses of both KCL and HKU.

My concern is just the repuatation of HKU compared to King's and Edinburgh'? Do you guys think that employers especially from Europe would generally prefer graduates from the UK or that it eventually even could be an advantage to go to HK, as it shows a lot of flexibility and cultural open mindeness, not to mention the opportunity to learn Mandarin Chinese.

It really is a tough decision.

Hi again.
I am not sure if it would necessarily be a benefit in the UK to go to HKU, if the UK is where you want to end up. Only from the standpoint that you would have more opportunity to meet potential employers in the UK if you are in fact in the UK. Most LLM programmes host a series of 'meet potential employers' events throughout (at least this is the case at Edi) and this gives a great chance to meet and greet and find out more about where you might like to work.
Perhaps you should contact career services advisors and ask them about going abroad versus a UK LLM.
Best of luck.