Do’s and Don’ts in an MUN Conference by Zeynep KESKİN

Hi everyone! I’m Zeynep. And in this article, I wanted to generally speak about “Do’s and Don’ts in a MUN Conference”. I basically got inspired by the article “10 Things Every Delegate Should Do in First Session” and I wanted to expand it and add more perspective. This article is not only for first-timers but also for experienced delegates. Based on my experiences, even though you are not a first-timer, you can still have hesitations and apprehension and that is totally relatable for all MUNers.

In a MUN conference, it is most likely for you to be in a new environment with new faces all around you and people you don’t know. It can cause you anxiety, pressure, and a lot more, but it shouldn’t. In my second conference, I was highly nervous and I remember one of my friends saying, “You have no reason to be worried there because those people don’t know you and they’ll identify you as to how you introduce yourself.” and this advice really helped me to calm down. If we were to enlarge this advice that my friend gave me, this basically means that it is okay to be worried however you shouldn’t let your anxiety take the chance of you having an amazing experience and getting to know brilliant people. And in this article, I’m here to help you to have the best experiences possible and great memories to look back in the future without having any regrets.

Research and Preparation

1) Do: Research delicately based on your study guide from dependable resources and also have a general idea of other countries’ policies.

Don’t: Don’t miss any point that takes place in your agenda item, study guide, or your countries’ perspective in that specific matter.

2) Do: Bring your researches with you to the conference, since you have done your researches from confidential sources, you might back your speeches up with solid information and also quote from them.

Don’t: Don’t go to the conference without any preparation with you, because of the stress it can cause, you might forget or have a hard time focusing on doing your speech that is extempore.

Meeting and Proceeding,

3) Do: Greet your committee! Introduce yourself briefly and tell your country, but most importantly give each other handshakes! (If the other delegate wants to, of course.) This may be one of the hardest things I have experienced as an introvert, but if you want to be seen as a confident and solid delegate, it is one of the main things you should absolutely do.

Don’t: Don’t sit quietly in a corner without communicating with other delegates and don’t withhold yourself from having an opportunity to meet amazing friends that will be long-lasting, trust me!

 

 

4) Do: Have at least one GSL, even if you’re not aiming for an award, you should experience the feeling of having the floor and the time to only yourself and your country. After making one GSL speech, you’ll have the courage of delivering multiple speeches.

Don’t: Don’t be afraid of having all eyes and attention on you. When you deliver a perfectly successful speech, you won’t regret it.

5)Do: Raise your placard as much as you can. Either it’s a motion or delivering a speech, if you have opinions that you can share, always try to do it. If you don’t have anything to say, try to create motions, or try to focus more on gathering up your ideas to deliver a speech.

Don’t: Don’t talk so little that you are to be picked for a random pick. And if you do get picked for a random pick, don’t stress out. Just calmly think about what you can say and deliver your speech. But if you don’t have anything to say, just state that you don’t have anything to say, greet and turn back to your seat.

6) Do: Be ready for the unexpected updates. Now, this probably is a one that concerns mostly crisis committees, in which everything can happen whenever the crisis team wants. And when updates come to the committee, if it is about your country, (or what/who you are representing) take it professionally and try to come up with best solutions, If possible, try to create more than one solution, you should always have backup plans, if your prior directive doesn’t get approved, then you will be advantaged to have other solutions so that you can use them. But if you don’t have any other ideas, try to make your directive as detailed as possible. This works for GA and specialized committees too. But we’ll get to it later on.

Don’t: Don’t get angry at the crisis team for sending harsh updates, they’re there to make your experience as good as possible. So, don’t get angry or overwhelmed.

7) Do: Note all the motions and suggestions as much as you can. They will be lifesavers at writing resolutions. Just write the motion that has been given by a specific delegate and write the discussed matters under it.

Don’t: Don’t get distracted by other things while the debate is going on, it will cause you to miss the arguments and make your final resolution paper not as perfect. If you do miss it, give points to listen to a specific speaker to repeat their speech. And do not ever forget: you cannot direct your points or questions directly to the delegate, you should always direct it to the chair board.

8)Do: Try to bring a laptop if you can, but if you can’t that’s totally okay. Just proceed with writing a resolution on your phone. And if you don’t have anyone to write resolution with you, (which is incredibly unlikely) convince other delegates, or write your own resolution if that’s allowed by the USG, depending on the agenda items. Also, make your resolution as detailed and as specific as possible. Then its chance to get approved will increase.

Don’t: Don’t give up on the idea of writing a resolution just because you don’t have a laptop etc. If you have enough content to write a resolution, go for it.

9)Do: If your resolution doesn’t pass or an unlucky incident happens, just be grateful for the experience, the people you met, and move on. Be happy!

Don’t: Don’t beat yourself up for anything. If worse comes to worst, you’ll just have the experience to add on your experience list.

But Most Importantly,

10) Do: Attending MUNs is all about having fun, exploring yourself, and your abilities. Do it!

Don’t: Don’t forget to be happy.: )

Zeynep Keskin