Daria Levina

Background

About Daria Levina

Before 2017, I had a prestigious law firm job. Then, I exhausted the opportunities for growth. So I decided to make a change. But, before I could, I had a hypothesis. I believed that doing a master of laws (LLM) would be an invaluable asset. I believed that LLM would do 2 things for me- give me one-of-a-kind experience with no gap on my CV - and create more options for the future. It took me two years to navigate the applications, and the results exceeded expectations. I received offers from Harvard, NYU, MIDS, and the University of Cambridge. I walked away from a CHF scholarship from MIDS and a Dean's Graduate Award from NYU, having raised to attend Harvard. On 15th August 2017, I started my LLM and it transformed my life. Since that day, I → worked for the Permanent Court of Arbitration, one of the world's oldest arbitration institutions → made a transition from a practicing lawyer to an academic → got a grant for doctoral studies at the European University Institute from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a 2.9% success rate → published a book and secured a deal for the 2nd one (to come out in 2024) → got offers for 4 postdoctoral positions out of 10 I applied for with a 40% success rate → served as an applications evaluator for LLMs and PhDs → diversified my options beyond anything I could have ever imagined → opened the doors I didn't know existed for myself and other people My mission is to help lawyers to effect a comparable change in their lives. If you want to learn more about how I did this, you can take my self-guided course on personal statements, download one of my guides or follow me here. For testimonials, please head to my website. →