The Secretariat Journey

By Jessica Knauss

Have you ever wondered how people can take on such big roles at MUN? The Secretariat of THIMUN is a group of individuals just like us who started as delegates and worked their way up to take on one of the most difficult roles within the conference.

A secretariat member must oversee certain committees to ensure that they are following the procedures and to avoid any internal issues. Vama oversees HRC1, HRC2, SDC1, and guides the student officers in their individual roles. Philip is the President of GA and Layan is the Secretary General. These three individuals along with three other members of the team work together to ensure that the conference as a whole meets all expectations. 

All of the members of the Secretariat have started somewhere. Vama started as a delegate and worked her way up the MUN ladder to become a chair and then a Secretary General at Frankfurt International School. Philip has been to many conferences and was Secretary General and the President of GA at the International School of the Hague. He has attended many other conferences and taken on different roles within them. Layan was a Deputy Secretary General in the past and an admin at her school. However, they all started from the same place, as humble delegates.

Considering the responsibilities of being a Secretariat member, certain qualities are beneficial, such as social, organizational, and leadership skills, along with flexibility, resilience, collaboration, strong role modeling, and a clear vision. In addition to this, you also want to look the part, you want to appear capable, approachable, and professional, but also to appear as an individual of great importance with an air of confidence.

Being a member of the Secretariat is not an easy job. You must have several exceptional qualities and have many past experiences, that will help you to become a member, but the level of difficulty should not stop anyone from endeavoring to be a part of the future Secretariats!