Model United Nations "Together we aspire, together we achieve"

Brian Alexander Harden
First year member
Economic and Social Council Plenary Committee

In comparison with other 3-credit courses, how much effort did the NMUN participation require of you?

NMUN is a very enriching experience where students will surely hone their existing communication skills, and will develop new interpersonal approaches as well.  The magnitude by which these skills improve may be measured by the amount of effort each student is willing to put into each class.

After learning about the National Model United Nations organization, and realizing what was expected of us, and I delved deeply into my weekly research, and I found myself enthusiastically spending entire afternoons and evenings preparing for the weekly meetings.

What academic benefits did you derive from participating in the 2001 NMUN?

National Model United Nations had brought a new intensity to my academic efforts.  When on the conference in New York, the entire team would spend up to 18 hours per day focused entirely on their three allotted topics, while building rapport with other student delegates from throughout the world.  That experience had reminded me of what it really takes to be a scholar.

What non-academic benefits did you derive from participating in the 2001 NMUN?

NMUN has brought my interpersonal skills to levels I had never reached before, and conversing with student delegates with backgrounds so very different from my own has introduced me to new perspectives on life.

Overall evaluation of the 2001 NMUN experience The National Model United Nations is an organization that requires more than time, effort and determination.  NMUN requires an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, a genuine love for other people, and an enthusiastic zest for life.  When on the NMUN conference in New York, I had found myself thinking, “joining NMUN is the very best decision I have made at Rider.”

Any statements I could write on paper would only provide a cursory overview of NMUN as a whole.  You must experience it yourself!  However, the two slogans introduced to us by National Model United Nations provide the outlook that we all have on NMUN, and they echo the realizations we have reached as a team over the past few months.  “I hear, I forget.  I see, I forget.  I do, I remember.” and “Together we aspire. Together we achieve”.  Rider’s NMUN team has achieved, and we have all walked away from NMUN with a better understanding of ourselves, of each other and of the world around us.

Self-Evaluation index

Faculty Adviser: Dr. Chau T. Phan, 896-5262,phanc@rider.edu