Model United Nations

Hello dear readers; I hope you are having a lovely day, and reading this will make it even

better. I will share my Gündoğdu MUN experience with you guys in this writing. I hope you enjoy it!

Let me explain what a MUN is to those who don't know; MUN, short for Model United

Nations, is an educational simulation in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations and the United Nations. At a MUN conference, students work as the representative of a country, organization or person and must solve a problem with other delegates from around the world. High school clubs or college clubs usually organize Model United Nations conferences.

There are usually ten official and one training session in a conference. Your chair and USG

(under-secretary general) will tell you about the procedure in the training session and teach you the basic terms you'll need. It would be the best if you weren't nervous to ask anything you don't understand.

Gündoğdu College organized the MUN I attended. I was a first-timer, and I had a fantastic time. Our assigned committees and countries were announced two weeks, and our study guides were announced one week before the conference. Study guides include topics to discuss at the sessions in your committees. There are usually two topics to discuss at a three days long conference. We had one week to prepare for the conference and researched our assigned countries'

policies and our government's initiative about various issues.

In most of the conferences, every committee has one Under-Secretary-General. The USG

is the head of the committee. Except for checking how the committee proceeds during the

conference days, a USG is responsible for writing the study guides before the conference for the

delegates to read and prepare. There are also The Committee Directors, who are also known as The Chairs. Those people are responsible for dealing with the committee. They direct the committee and are always there to help the delegates, just like everyone who worked for the conference.

You can't talk in anything but English during official sessions. Your chair and USG will

yell, "Official language is English," at the beginning of every session. If you don't follow the rule, there will be consequences. USGs, write your name on the punishment list and end of the session, you will find yourself doing something ridiculous such as playing just dance, eating hot sauce or

doing karaoke.

The only thing you must prepare before the conference is an opening speech. The first

session of a conference starts with every delegate's opening speeches. It should be short and straightforward and include what problems you are there to find solutions for. You should also start your speech with the phrase "Honourable Chair, fellow delegates..."

The last document I want to talk about is the resolution paper. A resolution contains all the

proposed solutions to a topic. Learning to write a resolution is very important because the main goal of the committee sessions is for the delegates to come up with written solutions to the problems they are trying to solve.

It was my first time at a MUN, so I didn't have enough experience to make a healthy

comparison, but it was pretty unique. I have wanted to attend a MUN since middle school. 5th grader me would be proud :') Everyone in charge was lovely to me and the other delegates, whether they were first-timers or not. It felt good to feel like a part of something.

There is a dress code since it's an official event. You have to wear formal clothes and not show too much skin or wear too much make-up. Your hair should be tidy and as away from your face as possible.

You can use your phone only for research or the notes app to write your speeches. Staff

members walk around the room while catering for your waters to see if anyone is using their phones for other purposes.

You can talk with other delegates via message papers. The message papers will be on your desks every day. You can fill the "From" and "To" parts with your and the delegate you want to talk with's country and ask staff to deliver it to them. You can also communicate with your Chair and USG like that. This a friendly reminder that you shouldn't ask for people's Instagram or phone numbers with that because staff members read them.

There are also fun activities happening outside during coffee breaks. Some chairs also make activities before or when there are few minutes to the end of the sessions.

One of the most fun things about MUN was the "gossip box" for me. A gossip box is

everyone writes anonymous things and puts them in it. Staff members will walk around at sessions and ask if you have any gossip. Speaking of them, they are also responsible for any of your needs.

They sit at the entrance of the room and check your requirements. At the beginning of every session, they also ask if anything is missing, like your message papers or pens.

MUNs are mostly known for their

after-parties, where everyone has the best time. It usually happens on the second day because, at the end of the third day, there is a closing ceremony where people get awards such as the best delegate, best staff, honourable mention etc.

MUNs are paid organizations except when organized by high school clubs, which only

accept delegates from that school. They are generally around 250-350, but considering they include everything you need and are a lot of fun, it is not that big of a deal.

Don't be shy about interacting with people. Everyone is friendly to each other and even if they aren't, remember you can always write gossip about them ;)

Ela Azranur ÖZMEMİŞ

9-B