How to Apply for the Paris Arbitration Academy and The Hague Academy of International Law, With Scholarships
A few years ago, I applied to the Paris Arbitration Academy and The Hague Academy of International Law. I secured admission and merit scholarships for both. For The Hague Academy, I also pursued the Directed Studies program, which required a separate application. In this post, I’ll share my experience with the application process and the strategies that helped me succeed.
Writing a Strong Motivation Letter
For both programs, a key part of the application was writing a motivation letter. Motivation letter had to explain why I was applying, what I hoped to gain from the program, and why I needed the scholarship. Typically, scholarship conditions will specify whether the funding is merit-based, need-based, or both. When this isn’t explicitly stated, I recommend addressing both aspects in your motivation letter.
In my applications, I built my argument around two core points:
1. My passion for international arbitration and private international law
I explained how deeply committed I was to advancing my knowledge in the fields of international arbitration and private international law. At the time, I was pursuing a Ph.D. in private international law at Lomonosov Moscow State University. I described how attending these programs would enhance my research, especially given the challenges of accessing expert legal scholarship in Russia. Since my research had a strong comparative component, I relied on fully-funded short programs and research stays to access foreign legal libraries.
2. Financial need
I further shared that due to my family’s socio-economic circumstances, scholarships had always been essential for funding my education. I pointed out that I had consistently used my time effectively by participating in conferences, publishing research, and coaching moot court teams. These experiences reflected my dedication to law that was made possible only due to scholarships.
From the financial viewpoint, I also highlighted the specifics, such as that at the time of my applications I was on leave from my law firm to pursue doctoral research and only had a limited income, relying on a DAAD scholarship of 600 EUR per month and personal savings.
Submitting a CV
In addition to the motivation letter, both applications required a CV. Although I don’t have the exact CV I submitted at the time, it was similar to the one I later used for my Harvard application, with some minor adjustments to reflect my achievements. I've written a separate blog post about it. If you’re preparing your CV, you can find detailed advice on how to craft a strong academic CV in my guide here, which is based on my experience evaluating hundreds of CVs as a member of admissions committees.
Applying to The Hague Academy of International Law
A few additional words on The Hague Academy. The year after doing the Paris Arbitration Academy, I applied to The Hague Academy’s Private International Law program and received a scholarship there too. I also participated in the Directed Studies program, which was an incredible experience. My Directed Studies group was led by Prof. Maxi Scherer, who also taught at the Paris Academy. This gave me an opportunity to interact with her more closely, and she later provided valuable recommendations for my LL.M. applications to U.S. universities - a gesture I greatly appreciated.
One important note: after receiving the scholarship, the Hague Academy requested a thank-you letter. Unfortunately, mine got lost in the mail, and they were understandably upset. As someone who has been on the provider side, investing time and effort into helping people and being treated with ungratefulness or taken as granted, I completely sympathize. Expressing gratitude is crucial, as it shows respect for the people and organizations supporting your journey. Just keep that in mind if they ask you to do the same.
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Hope this helps and good luck! ☺️
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