FIU Model United Nations team racks up awards in February

The FIU Model United Nations (MUN) team earned first place at the West Point Security Conference in February.

Team FIU was one of 14 teams invited by the U.S. Military Academy at West Point to participate in the conference. The conference held annually brings together civilian and military university students to develop comprehensive solutions to complex international problems.

FIU MUN was the smallest delegation, with six students competing, but the team earned twice as many points as the second-leading delegation at the conference. Team FIU beat out Georgetown University, Columbia University, the University of Virginia and  University of Pennsylvania.

The FIU Model UN team at the 2014 West Point Security Conference..

“It feels great to have placed first at West Point,” said Mark Hodgson, director of FIU MUN and double major in political science and international relations. “My goal in joining the team has been to challenge myself, apply what I learn in the classroom to real-life situations, like the ones presented at the conference, and to give other students the opportunity to do the same. The team worked very hard, I’m very proud of them.”

FIU MUN also won “Best Delegation,” or first place, at the University of North Carolina Model United Nations conference and earned second place in the “Outstanding Large Delegation” category at the Harvard National Model United Nations conference last month.

The team was ranked fifth “Best Delegate” in North America by BestDelegate.com, an education company that helps students and teachers worldwide succeed at Model United Nations. This latest, mid-season ranking moves FIU MUN up two spots from the seventh “Best Delegate” final ranking earned in 2012-2013. The team is expected to move up in ranking for the 2013-2014 final college rankings, set to be released later this year.

“We are so proud of our Model UN team’s hard work and accomplishments in the past month, said John Stack, executive director of the School of International and Public Affairs. “Our Model UN team’s success epitomizes the Worlds Ahead spirit of these exceptional students based on teamwork combined with strategic thinking, research and analytics skills, oral argumentation and negotiation skills.”

FIU MUN is a political science course that provides an interactive environment, engrossing students in the different aspects of political and international affairs. It is supported by the College of Arts & Sciences, School of International and Public Affairs and Student Government Association.

The FIU Model UN team is currently recruiting for the Fall 2014 semester and is open to all majors. For more information and an application, click here.