NMUN 2012: A Review

Led by Dr. John Griffith of the Department of English, eleven of NTUT students participated in the 2012 National Model United Nation (NMUN), representing the Dominican Republic in seven NMUN committees, on April 2 through April 11.

NMUN was formed in 1968 by the National Collegiate Conference Association in partnership with the United Nations Department of Public Information. It is hosted in New York, U.S.A. every spring. Every NMUN event has more than 5,000 student delegates from all over the world, and it is globally recognized as the largest and one of the most prestigious model United Nations events.

Students from NTUT represented the Dominican Republic in the First Committee, the Second Committee, the Third Committee, the Rio+20, the Commission on the Status of Women, the Organization of American States, and the Arms Trade Treaty. They covered core international issues including global economy, regional security, global environment management, gender equality, and humanitarian relief.

NTUT has been recruiting students to participate in NMUN since 2007. The delegation this year was selected in November 2011 and trained under the supervision of the chair of Department of English Dr. Yung-hua Yang. During the four months of training, student delegates were equipped with topic-oriented research skills and presentation skills. The result of the training was evident during the NMUN event as the NTUT delegates received much praise from delegates of other countries. Link Hung, a junior English major, was also appointed as the rapporteur of the Economic and Social Council.

NTUT student delegates also seized this opportunity to introduce Taiwan and NTUT to delegates from other countries, realizing diplomacy on a personal level. In addition to the scheduled meetings at NMUN, the student delegates also visited Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York and chatted with many of Taiwan’s diplomats.

Training Orientation and Committee Assignment

The Training Orientation and Committee Assignment took place in Room 301-1 of the General Education Building on Tuesday, November 15, 2011. Dr. Yang, the director of the NTUT GOES TO NMUN 2012 program, opened with a congratulation to the 16 students who made it to the Reserve Delegation.

Dr. Yang then got down to the business. She talked about the training sessions that will last from November through December, collevtively termed as the Reserve Delegation Training. The training sessions will consist of three major components: the Small Group Discussions, the Rules of Procedures sessions, and the Topic Presentation sessions. Students are expected to conduct their own discussions for at least four times during the course of the Reserve Delegation Training (the Small Group Discussions), learn about the Rules of Procedures that are used in all United Nations committees (the Rules of Procedures sessions), and talk about what they learn from the group discussions (Topic Presentation sessions). NTUT will be representing the Dominican Republic in NMUN 2012, and students are divided into different groups, each representing a different committee and addressing different issues on behalf of the Dominican Republic in NMUN 2012.

Dr. Yang also talked about the selection of the final delegates representing NTUT in NMUN 2012. Only 12 out of the 16 reserve delegates will be selected into the final delegation representing NTUT in NMUN 2012. The scheme is an accumulative, point-based system that has two parts: the Base Points and the Training Points. Each Reserve Delegate is given points based on their performance at the Reserve Delegation Selection (the Base Points). The Reserve Delegate also receives additional points accumulated to their Base Points from the three major components of the Reserve Delegation Training. The top 12 Reserve Delegates with the highest accumulative points by December 30 will be made the Final Delegates representing NTUT in NMUN 2012.

Link Nie, a junior English major, was also selected as the provisional Student Delegation Chair, assisting Dr. Yang and Ms. Amy Shen of of NTUT Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence in organizing and hosting all Reserve Delegation Training events. Robert Hsiao and Alicia Chen, two students who represented NTUT in NMUN 2009, in which NTUT won an Honorable Mention, will also head the Rules of Procedures sessions in the Reserve Delegation Training.

Dr. Yang ended the meeting with a word of encouragement and wished the best for all Reserve Delegates in making it to the final delegation.

Thank you and...

Thank you all for participating in the NMUN 2012 Reserve Delegation Selection yesterday. We would also like to take this opportunity to remind you to come to Ms. Amy Shen on November 21 to pick up your Certificate of Participation in the Reserve Delegation Selection. If you are in a General English class this semester, you can use the certificate to ask for extra points (maximum 2 points) to be added to your overall score.

Thank you again, and the result of the Reserve Delegation will be announced here on November 10.

Orientation

The orientation of NTUT GOES TO NMUN took place in the First Lecture Hall of the Integrated Technology Building on Thursday, October 13, 2011.

Dr. Yang of the Department of English (also the director of the NTUT GOES TO NMUN project) had a brief talk about the requirement of a student delegate and how to apply for the candidacy of a student delegate. She also talked about how you should prepare a position paper (a requirement for the student delegate candidacy application). The PowerPoint file she used on the day can be download directly or found listed at the top of the website sidebar.

Robert Hsiao, an NTUT electrical engineering senior who has previously participated in NMUN 2009, also talked about his experience and what the students need to prepare - especially mindset-wise - in the orientation.

Dr. Yang wrapped up the orientation with a word of encouragement.

If you would like to know more about the student delegation selection process and the application, you can go to the Student Delegation Selection section of this site for more information. Remember, you need to submit your application (together with all the other necessary documents) by Thursday, October 27, 2011 to Ms. Amy Shen of the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence. Don't wait; get to it! Let's go to NMUN 2012 together!