FIU Model United Nations Travel Team

My high school in Spain had no formal MUN team: our "team" was a handful of students with decent English-speaking skills who volunteered for extra credit in English class.  If we wanted to perform well, we had to search for training ourselves.  Despite the challenges, sixteen-year-old Bianca became more confident in herself and found enjoyment in discussing ways to resolve global challenges in a collaborative manner.  MUN was the spark of my passion for international relations, so I knew I had to continue it in university.  Thankfully, FIU provided.

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FIU's Model United Nations (MUN) team has been ranked as a top 5 team in North America for the past 10 years. The selected travel team competes 10-12 times a year in conferences around the region, including Harvard University, the University of Chicago, Columbia University, McGill University in Montreal, and Georgetown University.  At these conferences, delegates exercise skills such as analytical writing, public speaking and leadership.  I wanted to join my freshman year, but the effects of the pandemic delayed my decision to apply until my sophomore year.  Since August 2021, I've been a travelling team member and have awarded at various conferences, helping boost FIU's reputation and ranking nationally.

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Being part of FIU MUN meant that I could, at last, get formal training, better guidance, and meant I had to adapt to a whole different way of competing.  In high school, I was used to the slower, more traditional General Assembly styles of debate.  At FIU MUN, I learned to also become a Crisis delegate where resourcefulness, speed, creativity, and strong leadership rule the arena.  I took to the new style of debate so well, that Crisis committees were my specialty -- after just two months as a member, I won first place in my committee at my first in-person conference at Georgetown University in October 2021.  The FIU MUN team embraced us "newbies" with open arms.  They showed us the ropes, how to create speeches on the go, and overall leave a legacy of lifetime friendships.  With over 30 members and different characters or countries to represent, there was no shortage of different perspectives!  MUN helped me enhance my public speaking skills and leadership capabilities.  The research that went into preparing for every conference remains with me, and I integrate it into my essays for my International Relations degree.  I am forever grateful for the family that FIU MUN has given me, and hope this will continue to be the case for future MUN generations.  Below, I have included photos featuring members of the FIU MUN team during various conferences.