Xiao Mao

Xiao Mao is a DPhil in Law candidate at the University of Oxford, and her DPhil research explores the concept of impartiality in international courts and tribunals. She is a 2018 Chinese Rhodes Scholar. Her research is supervised by Professor Dan Sarooshi KC. 

She holds degrees from University of Oxford (MPhil), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (Msc), University College London (LLM, dist) and Shanghai Jiao Tong University (LLB, dist). 

She devotes herself to international legal research, teaching, and practice in various roles. She has worked at the Office of Public Counsel for the Defence at the International Criminal Court (2023) and at the International Court of Justice (Judicial Fellow nominated by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 2021-2022). She has taught international law courses for University of Oxford (GTA for Public International Law 2020-2021, 2022-2023), Jindal-Somerville Summer School on International Law (2023), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (Visiting Scholar, 2021), and several other Chinese universities. She also has work experience at Pro-bono International Law Firm (Public International Law and Policy Group), NGO (Chinese Initiative on International Law), and international law research institutions (Centre for Tokyo Trial Studies at Shanghai Jiao Tong University,  Centre for International Criminal Justice at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam). She is an assistant editor for Chinese Journal of International Law (2020 - Present) and Asian Journal of Law and Society (2018-2020), and an editor for Amsterdam Law Forum (2017-2018). Furthermore, she has served as a co-convenor of Chinese Law Discussion Group (2018-2021).

Besides the Rhodes Scholarship, her study and research were sponsored by a number of scholarships and awards, such as the VUFP/Orange Tulip Scholarship awarded by the Netherlands Education Support Offices, National Scholarship awarded by the Chinese Ministry of Education, KoGuan Scholarship (twice), Chun-Tsung Scholarship, and Top 1% Excellent Bachelor Thesis, etc.