Community Interviews: Model United Nations Community

Could you please provide some brief information about your community?

Model United Nations is an international academic debate club. Almost every long-established, prominent school in the world has an MUN club, and that club organizes debate events on a regular basis. During those events; students debate on the current world issues as if they are the delegates of the country they represent, and endeavor to resolve them in accordance with the code of ethics and using the addressing techniques of the United Nations in such committees as the General Assembly of the United Nations, the Security Council and ECOSOC.  At the end of the event, which lasts for four days; the resolution paper issued, which is signed by the persons, who have attended the United Nations debate sessions and have contributed to the resolution, is submitted. The event is conducted entirely in English, and poses a versatile nature. Students may attend the events not only as delegates but also as journalists, photographers, committee directors or as the members of the organization staff. 

Could you please tell us about your activities?

Our club has been operating actively since the foundation of the university. Having hosted a EuroAsia MUN event firstly, our club has so far attended through its members to significant events held at home and in abroad as delegates, chairs, academic assistants and as undersecretary general, and has won prizes. 

How many members actively take part in the community activities? From what departments are your members? Could you please tell us  about member profile of your community?

Our club currently has 50 members, and some 16 members works on the conference event that we have been preparing. Our members are from the following departments: International Relations, Business Administration, Law, History, English Language and Literature, Turkish Language and Literature, Materials Science and Nanotechnology Engineering, Industrial Engineering and Medicine. Our club also have members, who are students of Koç University, Galatasaray University and Bilkent University. The members of our crew are categorized into two groups, being Organization and Academics. Such key affairs of the conferences as the logistics, human resources and finance are handled and arranged by the members of the Organization group. The members of the Academics group, on the other hand, prepare the topics to be discussed at the event, the protocol and the researches.

What would you like to say to address your prospect members? Are there any prerequisites to join the community?

We observe a considerable level of hesitation with the students, who are attending the preparatory class, since the events we organize or attend are conducted entirely in English. However; these events offer a significant opportunity of self-improvement especially in respect of speaking skills. Through the course of debates, people with English skills at any level debate together, which enables you to measure your own level and improve your skills. What really matters during the conference is not the level of your English but your idea for the resolution of the crisis at issue, and preparing yourself through reading the articles, which will be authored by us and be delivered to you in advance, will help you come up with a viable idea and express it properly. The only requirement for joining our crew is self-confidence. 

What are your goals for the community? What kind of activities do you intend to carry out?

It is the goal of our community to improve the knowledge of our members about the United Nations as well as debating and resolution development at diplomatic level, and to render such activities regular by way of organizing conferences. Currently, we have been working on a conference, which will be the first MUN event to be organized by our University with its own name; and our members have been working on it non-stop. We hope for ETU MUN, being the conference, on which have been working, to be held repeatedly and to so become a tradition in the forthcoming years.

How do the community activities affect your undergraduate education or career goals?

Model United Nations is an event, which is known and recognized by numerous national and international universities and corporations, and which enables significant self-improvement opportunities.. Throughout these events; corporations and universities establish that you are internationally competent individuals, who are well-experienced and certified, highly competent in English, have a broad general knowledge, are capable of crisis management and resolution, sensitive to the world problems, eloquent, and who have the capacity for empathy.  Attendance to these events constitute a good reference especially for the students, who plan to attend graduate programs or to build an academic career especially in such disciplines as the International Relations, Law and Political Science. Also, students from other departments can gain such skills as leadership, entrepreneurship, foreign language and social crisis resolution, and can take part in the conference organization and improve themselves in many fields. And of course; as far as the students, who study at departments of fine arts and literature, taking part in the preparation of the designs for the events and making interviews and preparing reports for the journals published throughout the event offer a great self-improvement opportunity.