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

Atul Sharma
Second year member
Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation   In comparison with other 3-credit courses, how much effort did the NMUN participation require of you?
  The effort that I put forth this year in NMUN cannot be compared to any I class that I have ever taken at Rider University.  Model UN is a class that requires that you put forth everything that you have inside of you, in order to have the chance to achieve greatness.  NMUN is so much different than any course I have ever taken because everything you do in the whole semester leads up to a week that can make or break everything you have inside of you, and that is why I would have to say NMUN was the hardest class I have ever taken.
  What academic benefits did you derive from participating in the 2001 NMUN?  
Going through the NMUN experience for the second year in a row, I thought that I had learned pretty much what I had to learn last year; I was wrong.  I was extremely surprised but also extremely grateful for all that I learned this year.  NMUN allowed me to learn an extensive amount New Zealand’s international policies and many interesting facts about New Zealand’s economy also.  Along with learning about New Zealand, I also learned about the economies and international policies of many UN member nations in the South Pacific.  One major academic benefit I gained from NMUN was learning about APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation).  I had only heard about this facet of the United Nations on the news occasionally, but I never had the time to really learn about it until NMUN.

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

The biggest non-academic benefit that I derived from participating in the 2001 NMUN was learning to let go of your independence for a semester and work towards being “the best”.  NMUN allows you to be an integral part of a team that although is not really recognized on Rider campus, has a large amount of influence and power in the National Model United Nations level.

The team that we developed this year was the most “in sync” group I have ever been apart of in my life.  The team unity was amazing this year.  I saw every single team member give their all towards the conference and to their fellow team member.  Every night the team would meet as a whole and discuss any problems they were having, and the group as a whole would set out to try to solve them.
 

Overall evaluation of the 2001 NMUN experience.
  My overall evaluation of NMUN this year was that it helped me polish off all the skills that I will need to use in the real world.  It helped me to further develop my public speaking skills and my caucusing skills.

I really enjoyed my 2 years in the NMUN team, and I am really going to miss all the friends that I have made.  NMUN really has had a huge impact on my life and I am really sad that my NMUN experience is over.

Self-Evaluation index

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