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Politics and International Studies

Model Diplomacy Testimonials

Deplomacy

“I have found the exercise to be an amazing opportunity to translate theoretical skills I have learnt at Warwick into something with practical, real world applications. Alongside this it has boosted my skills in public speaking, leadership and group discussion in an impressively short amount of time. Despite my decisions as president not having any effect on actual American policy, engaging in role-play made decisions and emergencies feel as if they were real and meaningful. Overall, I would highly recommend this to all PAIS students for the debating and decision-making skills it provides.”

“I did enjoy the event, I think it was quite engaging and interesting even in itself, not to mention the benefits for the CV and, thus, career progression. It felt great to do something very practice-oriented and attuned towards real-life conditions that policy-makers are facing when making decisions on complicated matters, I think it really helped all participants to take a look at international relations from a whole new perspective. In my opinion, Model Diplomacy makes a great addition to the course, it would be amazing if more events like this were organized in the future.”

“As a politics student, I extremely enjoyed this simulation because it provided me with insight into how the diplomatic process works and allowed me to gain familiarity with an activity I was interested in but felt insecure about, due to a partial lack of practical experience: this event made me feel more confident in my skills and in my decision to pursue a career in the field. I would definitely recommend hosting the Model Diplomacy in the future as it is an opportunity to proactively engage students and provide them with the necessary tools to succeed in similar, real-life opportunities”.

“I really appreciated the opportunity to participate in the Council on Foreign Relations Model Diplomacy; it gave an insight into the roleplay exercises which think tanks and other organisations are increasingly putting into practice, and to get such practical experience during my academic studies will prove beneficial in the future. I think the option to amalgamate our position papers into a working paper also provides a great incentive to contribute fully to the whole process. I definitely think this should be part of the MA programme; you get out of it what you put in.”

“From this activity, I have gained valuable experience making use of the knowledge I learned in my courses in a more practical setting. Basing on a simulated scenario on Russia and the Baltic states, I and my classmate get a taste of what would be like in real-world policymaking, where we engage in a simulated NSA setting to make a coordinated decision on the issue. The fact that the activity is programmed by CFR also makes it more credible and recognizable as a legitimate experience for employability”.

“The Model Diplomacy Trial was a great experience, which I enjoyed very much. It was very educational to put into practice all that I had learnt throughout the academic year. I was very excited about the role I was assigned and felt that it reflected the modules I had studied as part of my MA. I would encourage students to participate and certainly would be happy to be part of the experience again”.

"I really enjoyed the CFR Model Diplomacy event recently held by Dr. Hassan, as it was an excellent opportunity to engage with the practical day-to-day issues that we have been studying through a theoretical lens for the past year. It was also a fun opportunity to engage with similarly passionate classmates in an environment where we all felt comfortable debating our points of view and trying to come to a point of compromise. I think it would be great if the department worked to further incorporate such activities into the curriculum in future years."
“I thoroughly enjoyed the Model Diplomacy Simulation facilitated by Dr Hassan. The experience was a unique chance to experience the decision-making processes of real world crisis management and apply the knowledge and skills attained throughout my time at Warwick. The event was excellently organised and executed by Dr Hassan and a truly fitting ending to many enjoyable years studying at PAIS! I would recommend future participation to any student passionate about IR and Security Studies and for its inclusion in future curricula at MA level.”
“Taking part in the simulation was extremely rewarding in numerous ways: it allowed me to put my knowledge into action and experience a professional setting before graduating and being thrust into the real world. It was overall much more fruitful and beneficial than I originally assumed. It did not feel like merely role-play or an activity, but surprisingly felt very real. The environment we were placed in, the created atmosphere and organisation of the simulation were vital components to making it feel legitimate. I would certainly recommend for the simulation to become a permanent and frequent part of the curriculum”.
“The Model Diplomacy role-play, along with many others of such kind, need to be incorporated in politics and international studies’ curricula in order to stimulate students’ soft skills. In particular, the Model Diplomacy exercise enjoys two major benefits: the structure it provides, not only during the role-play but also prior to that day, guiding students throughout the entire process. Second, giving the students the responsibility to guide the debate, it demands a great capacity to moderate the discussion and to continuously evaluate the relevance of the issues being discussed, in order to achieve the policy objectives intended.”
“I quite enjoyed the Model Diplomacy role play session as it gave me the opportunity to interact with my peers out of the context of our curriculum. Herein, I applied theories taught in class to a case study which exposed me to the practical implications of what I have studied as a postgraduate student of International Relations.

The day was well planned and designed to create meaningful discussions. I found the content interesting and the tasks challenging enough to keep me engaged throughout the session. The structure of the exercise helped us reach meaningful conclusions and I felt that everyone was given a fair chance to voice their opinion”.
“The activity was a unique experience in a number of ways. The first and foremost feeling of mine is that theories are important but the reality is more important. Therefore, I enjoyed a lot of being practical through the activity. As for the improvement, if there is sufficient participants, it would be great to have both sides (US and Russia) to participate in the simulation and present their policies respectively in order to dig deeper of the consequences of each foreign policy option.”