Things you don't learn at an MUN

If you google the actual definition you will see that it is termed as an educational simulation through which you will develop leadership skills and can learn about diplomacy and international relations.

Ideally that should have been the case. However, it's not . Why? To understand that you will have to know how MUNs are actually promoted and what goes on during the conference.

If you see the event link or website of any MUN, you will notice that the way they promote the conference is by marketing the venue, the luxurious restaurants for socials and performances by bands which, by the way, is a great promotional strategy because it works really well. Over the years, MUNs have become one the most popular past times for teenagers. But does it serve the purpose of learning diplomacy?

Well, not quite. When you promote a conference which is about learning diplomacy and understanding international relation by telling people that they will get to stay in fancy hotels, see fancy dance performances, dress up for socials and click pictures that are worthy of making their social media page attractive, that's exactly what they sign up for.

Inside the conference rooms, when sessions are ongoing, you will find only one or two people participating throughout the whole session. Most participants don't even bother to speak once and just wait for the session to end so that they can get back to the main part of the 4-day long event, the socialising part. You will find delegates gossiping or taking pictures while the session is going on, which by the way is prohibited according to MUN rules.

Even the one or two who participate, end up reading out of pages they found on the internet without proper understanding of the subject. There will be times when you see the delegate of USA saying that he/she is glad to be a part of the Kyoto protocol, which is a bit hilarious given USA is not a part of the Kyoto protocol. Once in a while, the delegate of Canada ends up saying that the name of Canadian prime minister is Angela Merkel. Most resolutions prepared by the delegates are just a copy paste version of previous resolutions already passed by the United Nations. Allies are identified not on the basis of foreign policy but how friendly you are with the delegate of that country.

But the worst part is that it defeats the purpose of learning. Because delegates are pitted against each other for winning awards, and the marking procedures for EBs are so arbitrary that you might be saying all the right things and still missing out on awards because the people in your committee has "better connections" with the delegate who is leading the other block. Sadly, for you to perform to the best of your abilities, you need participation from other delegates because to learn "international relationship" and "diplomacy" there needs to be other delegates participating in the process

But at the end of the day you do get to make new friends and socialise, which should have some value right? Well, not if you compare it with the amount of money it requires for participating in an MUN. Most MUNs in Bangladesh cost about BDT 3000 to BDT 6000. So you can only imagine how much it would cost if you were to participate in an international MUN.

So, does MUN teach us about diplomacy and international relationship or prepare us for being world leaders? The answer in most cases is no. But if you never got to go to prom, this might be your chance to redeem yourself.