What do you think about the 2 courses that IALS is offering?
LLM in International Corporate Governance, Financial Regulation and Economic Law ,
and
MA in Taxation (Law, Administration and Practice).

I've been admitted to Queen Mary but as far as it seems IALS has better programs in the field of tax law and corporate financial, am I wrong? what's your opinion about it?

thank you

Alberto

Hi there!

I 've been offered a place at IALS (LLM in International International Corporate Governance, Financial Regulation and Economic Law) and I think I am going to accept the offer. The programs are really interesting but I couldn't found out additional information about the ranking of the Institute and its reputation. Can someone help? Thank you

I think the status of a course will ultimately depend on the following:
[1] the entry standards - impact upon the quality of the discussions
[2] the quality of those chosen to tutor and conduct seminars
[3] the extent to which value is added and the difficulty of the course
[4] the total experience and the comments from those who have successfully completed

The MA in Taxation is an inaugural course 2008/09 and therefore the full-time participants will share their views accordingly. For part-time students who have yet to complete, the view is that this course is set to become a leader in Europe. If only because the team of tutors assembled is of the very highest quality. For those whose first language is not English - unless well versed in European and International Tax Law - be ready for a rough ride!

Does anybody have any experience of the above MA Tax? From what I have read the academic staff is really well known but the program is new and the institution not as famous as the other University of London colleges.

I am currently in my second year at IALS. The MA in Taxation has been a challenging and rewarding endeavour. Those undertaking the course are from a variety of backgrounds and it is international in flavour. In the final analysis the purpose of the course, in the main, must surely be twofold:
[1] the acquisition of knowledge and skill sets, and
[2] the substantial improvement in writing on tax law or related topics.

To that extent, and particularly with respect to the dissertation, the course offers the backdrop against which a solid research undertaking, professionally guided, can be completed. It has been difficult and challenging no doubt, but immensely rewarding.
There are students from Italy, Portugal, Africa generally, Malta, Lithuania, as well as home students and members of HMRC. There are those with a law background, tax background, accounting background and so the breadth of perspectives as well as the depth of the course engendered by world-renowned tutors, means that the course is aimed squarely at tax professionals or those intending to specialize in tax.
Some of the better-known LLM courses are not tax specialist courses, as such, and there is a mix-and-match element amongst several law topics. In consequence, there will be those taking a tax course to complement an LLM in Commercial Law, for example - this would inevitably dilute the quality of discussions and the level at which the course can be pitched. The course at IALS, attracting tax specialists current or aspiring, may be pitched at a correspondingly higher level.

Thank you RevenueLawBore for the information. Have you any idea what employers think about this program of IALS? Is it recognised?

Recognition may take several forms, including:

[1] employers in tax will instantly recognize the course and academic directors (Prof Dr Philip Baker QC and Dr Tom O'Shea resepectively) and other tutors on the course,

[2] the course, depending on modules chosen, provides a very solid grounding for the ADIT exams (with no further tuition materials needed) and a dissertation submitted for the MA may be structured in such a fashion that it may be approved for one of the 3 papers (and the academic committee assessing the thesis application within ADIT is - John Avery Jones, Philip Baker, Malcolm Gammie, Kees van Raad and Jefferson Vandervolk), and this qualification complements the MA to carry considerable weight,

[3] many of the students hold senior posts within the tax profession and, as employers themselves, are recommending the course to others - this is indicative that the course is set to gain a significant worldwide reputation,

[4] joining the course earlier rather than later enables students to have a disproportionate say in certain areas that are likely to be far more regimented as time passes, mode of assessment would perhaps be one such area (modules are assessed by papers not exams, but sometimes discussions may be had about problem scenarios versus academic titles at the periphery), and this may help towards a better mark - this is an institute of the University of London where a Merit is an average of 65-69 and a Distinction is an average of 70 or above, this carries with it recognition to employers,

[4] there are other events organized and/or hosted by the Institute which enable a student to work hard and potentially get a paper published (this is specifically EC Tax Law related at present but there is no reason why it could not apply to other modules) and this would impress any potential employer.

The future planning for the MA and certainly the Institute seems to be the creation of a Tax Institute, so that passing the knowledge and skill set baton to the students is paramount in forming a graduate pool from which potential MPhil/PhD candidates may be sourced. In this regard, to have as Philip Baker or Tom O'Shea as a supervisor on an MA dissertation enables a student, and the supervisor, to test whether such a relationship would be workable for a larger piece of research.

I want to study an Masters specialising in tax. I prosecute very large tax cases in the UK , and have done so for 10 years, and am minded to move into more commercial litigation and advisory work.
The IALS MA in tax seems far broader than most LLM courses on offer. 10 courses not the 3 you take at Queen Marys or KCL. Those LLM at least specialise in tax. The LSE programme is not even a specialist tax LLM. You can pick subjects that involve tax.

How is the IALS programme viewed now a few years into operation. On any sensible level it should be highly regarded. It is not pure law but also practice and admin.
Any views from those who have have taken it?