My Model United Nations Journey

I am writing this post to share what I know about MUN through my experiences, and hopefully some potential MUNers find this post to know of it.

I started Model United Nations way back in late 2014, but I officially went for a conference in 2015. It was daunting to say the least, I've had a history of learning about international relations and was pretty much an armchair politician at that point. Now, having to stand up and speak to a room filled with young people, all eager to know what I have to say, well the experience really is something else.

Of course, knowing your stuff before an MUN Conference begins is essential. If I had not read up on the country I was assigned to, I would have been a sitting duck for all delegates to attack me. I learned of the different formats used, there was THIMUN, and there was HMUN (Don't worry, you'll get used to these terms eventually). I started off with THIMUN and boy was the opening act a long one. Every delegate was to give a speech and imagine being anxious WHILE waiting for it to be your turn. Boy, that must have been a real drag. When it was my turn to speak, my legs were shaking and my voice swelled up. I made an elementary mistake as well, which was using first person pronouns when giving my speech. To be professional and to be as accurate as a diplomat as possible, all delegates were required to speak in third person.

After that blunder, I thought to myself; "Gosh... I downright messed up my first impressions...". Really though, first impressions matter a lot, and your Chairs will take note of it. But even if you mess up, you should not take it too rough. Pick yourself up and continue on speaking. Long story short, I gave my all and continued pushing for my country's agenda in the council. There were compromises but I stuck to my guns on clauses which have are in direct relations to my country. After I was told that there would be an awards ceremony for delegates who do well, I was gobsmacked to know that I won an award. I mean, I did not even know that awards were a thing for conferences such as this.

Did the award push me for more conferences? Yes it did. It helped boost my confidence and it helped me with my applications for jobs, scholarships, and interviews. It provided a physical backing of whatever I claim to have done during the conference. Are awards everything? No. Friends made during those conferences were everything. They helped me through thick and thin, all the while having fun together.

I learned a great deal from MUN and I am generally a more confident person than I could have envisioned. Is it it worth? Yes, definitely. If you are still considering on whether or not to join, I'd say go for it and give it a shot.

My best regards to you for all your future endeavours,
Cal.