Representing Universität Würzburg in New York
This article was originally published in German. The English version is an automatic translation and may contain errors. The German original is authoritative.
Imagine you're standing at Times Square, eating your morning bagel, drinking an iced coffee and getting into a taxi to reach the United Nations Plaza. There you will stand in front of 5000 people, give a speech that you have prepared for several weeks and discuss with students from all over the world. That could be you with NMUN. But what exactly is NMUN?
NMUN stands for National Model United Nations and is the world's largest simulation conference of the United Nations. Almost 5000 students from over 130 countries participate in it every year. The delegations from the various universities represent the member states of the United Nations and simulate the negotiation processes in various committees.
The coaches/faculty advisors who are looking after our delegation this year are Filip Simonovski, Michelle Kobroski and Nyein Chan May. They study computer science, economics and political and social studies. In the following, Filip and Michelle share the experiences they have gained with NMUN.
What did you learn about yourself during that time?
Filip: I really enjoy speaking in front of people and that has been confirmed during the project. I also noticed that I expressed myself on every topic in our delegation or had some comment. I don't want to change this quality, but I want to learn how to deal with it. You can't always have what you want, and you don't necessarily have to express yourself on everything, but it's also good if you can say what you want.
What was your most beautiful experience as a delegate during your NMUN time?
Filip: I completed the project entirely online because it was during the Corona pandemic. The most beautiful thing was still the New York conference. The conferences in Karlsruhe and Erfurt were with students from Germany, which is why the perspective and way of working was always very similar. For students from America and Canada, NMUN is a somewhat different project. It is graded and their professors examine their speeches and how they work. It was a very big challenge, but in retrospect it was a good experience.
Michelle: I think it was when we all sat together in a row at the closing ceremony in New York. We all had no hope of winning anything and our university was called last of all. That was really the most beautiful moment when we received the "distinguished delegation award" for the whole group. That's basically the second place of the conference.
What skills have you gained?
Filip: In this project you learn how to argue in a structured way, organise your thoughts and make them comprehensible to others. Besides, the speech training brought me a lot.
Michelle: Definitely speaking in front of other people. I couldn't do that before MUN. I always got mega nervous when I had to speak in front of other people. I learned to give a speech in front of strangers, but also just to approach unfamiliar people. I became much more open and self-confident as a result.
Why are you now a coach/FA?
Michelle: MUN has become a real passion project for me. I couldn't imagine just being done after three conferences and I thought to myself why not just continue. You can get to know more people from Würzburg who have similar interests and enjoy the time again. To pass on the knowledge I've gathered and help other people overcome their shyness and become more self-confident.
Why would you recommend others to participate in NMUN?
Filip: Anyone who is interested in politics or the UN should consider it. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity to experience something new, learn something, represent different values and put yourself in the position of another country. It just makes you grow as a person and of course you have the opportunity to fly to New York.
Michelle: It's a unique experience that really helps you personally. In terms of what do I want to do later: can I imagine working in politics? It's the perfect project to dare to try. You're not graded and there's no pressure, which means you can experiment and test yourself. I mean you have the opportunity to talk to ambassadors and politicians and fly to New York. You should take that chance.