Are you looking for a club where you can hang out with friends while debating international diplomacy and advance important skills like leadership and public speaking?

Model United Nations, also known as Model UN or MUN, is an interactive simulation of the United Nations where students represent countries, organizations, or characters to tackle global issues. Hundreds of thousands of students participate in Model UN around the globe. Delegates engage in research, public speaking, debating, negotiation, diplomacy, and creative writing during committee. Whether you are passionate about international diplomacy, looking to build your leadership skills, or just want to hang out with friends and meet new people, Model UN builds critical thinking, public speaking skills, leadership, and awareness of global issues. 

Delegates go to "Conferences"- weekend events usually hosted by a high school or university. These trips are your opportunity to showcase your Model UN skills in committee with students from other schools and win awards. Delegates are assigned countries and receive background guides to help them prepare prior to committee.

There are different types of committees you can sign up to participate in: General Assembly (GA), Specialized Agencies, Crisis, and Ad Hoc.

• In GA, delegates simulate the United Nations General Assembly, where two delegates represent each country. The topic of a GA is typically related to realistic, serious global issues like climate change, education, or international security. GA committees almost always require position papers, essays that are usually a couple of pages long and detail the delegation's position on the problem prior to the conference.
• In Crisis, delegates are challenged with timed events and crises, testing their problem-solving skills through fast-paced and unpredictable story arcs and shaping the storyline! You might represent a historical figure, a corporate CEO, or even a character from popular media. Delegates must deal with new information being thrown in through crisis updates, making everything uncertain. Test your problem-solving and improv skills as you follow secret directives to navigate the chaos and shape the story in your favor.
• In Specialized Agencies, a middle ground between GA and Crisis, delegates simulate UN agencies (like the World Health Organization (WHO) or the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)), NGOs, or historical committees. Specialized Agencies are typically smaller than GA and focus on specific issues, allowing for more creative solutions and problem-solving.
• In Ad Hoc, delegates don't get to prepare for the committee, and the background guide and topic are revealed only when it starts. Ad hoc committees are typically very similar to Crisis, fast-paced, and often the most competitive. No position papers are required.

The goal of any committee is to promote your country/character's interests. Committees begin with every delegate giving a speech explaining their general position on the topic. After that, delegates begin taking turns giving short speeches about specific sub-topics, incorporating each other's ideas. In unmoderated caucuses, delegates participate in unstructured debate and split into blocs, groups that work together to write resolutions, written solutions to the topic, and advance shared interests. Committees usually end with resolutions being presented, debated, and voted on.

Model UN is not the same thing as a "debate club", but delegates do participate in debate in committee. The key difference is that MUN focuses more on teamwork and diplomacy than on convincing someone your stance is correct. Model UN is less competitive and focused more on passing a resolution and influencing policy than winning over a judge.

Most importantly, MUN is FUN.