Conference Policies

Awards & Evaluation Rubrics

At its core, GSMUN is an educational and community-oriented institution that prides itself on building confident and compassionate global leaders through strengthening delegates’ speaking, writing, and research skills.

We recognize and acknowledge the subjectivity that often accompanies the decisions regarding delegate awards in the Model United Nations community, as well as the role that chair bias and prejudgment can play in such decisions. We want to create a positive and welcoming conference experience for all delegates regardless of personal background or opinion that emphasizes genuine diplomacy, collaboration, and coalition building—values that can often be lost in competitive Model UN committee rooms. To that end, we have developed a rubric system for evaluating both delegate position papers and holistic committee performance. This will provide an objective, score-based means for committee chairs to decide delegate awards with the aim of increasing equity and transparency in our conference’s decision-making process.

Any questions regarding GSMUN’s rubric evaluation system may be directed to Secretary-General Rohini Mudinur at gsmun.secgen@gmail.com.

Delegate Performance

All delegates will be evaluated on both their in-room committee performance and out-of-committee research using a uniform rubric and will be assigned a score across five categories. The rubric will be returned to delegates by the chairs at the conclusion of the conference. The delegate performance rubric evaluates the following criteria, all given their own weighting percentages:

  • In-Room Debate (Moderated Caucuses)

  • In-Room Debate (Unmoderated Caucuses)

  • Resolutions

  • Position Paper

  • Diplomacy/Collaboration

Position Paper

Position papers are required for any delegate who wishes to be considered for awards. Position papers should be submitted by 5 PM on Friday, March 22 to the respective committee’s chair email. All position papers will be graded by the committee chairs and assigned a score on the designated rubric, which will be returned to delegates by email at the end of the conference. The position paper rubric evaluates the following criteria, all given their own weighting percentages:

  • Overview

  • Analysis

  • Topic Understanding

  • Diction

  • Grammar/Spelling

  • CMS Formatting

Harassment/Discrimination

Harassment or discrimination of any kind based on race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, national origin, religion, age, or disability is strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated at GSMUN. Delegates may report incidents of harassment or discrimination to their committee chairs or anonymously to a secretariat phone number contact distributed during the conference. Delegates found guilty of this offense may be subject to disqualification from committee awards or removal from the conference.

Plagiarism, Prewriting, & Artificial Intelligence

GSMUN does not tolerate plagiarism of any form. All position papers must follow the honor code policy of Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School and may be subject to plagiarism checks by committee chairs in the grading process. If plagiarism is detected in a delegate’s position paper, the committee chair will notify the delegate’s sponsor and a designated GSMUN secretariat member. Plagiarism will immediately disqualify delegates from individual committee awards.

Furthermore, GSMUN values a collaborative conference experience where all delegates are given equal opportunities to speak and participate. Thus, prewriting of committee resolutions or directives outside of committee sessions is strictly prohibited. Any delegates found guilty of prewriting may be subject to disqualification from awards.

GSMUN considers all uses of AI, including applications such as ChatGPT, to be in the same vein as plagiarism. All submitted position papers will be checked for AI use by committee chairs when grading. If AI use is detected, the same disciplinary process for plagiarism will occur.

Dress Code

The dress code for GSMUN is Western Business Attire (WBA). This includes but is not limited to button-downs, blazers/formal coats, slacks, ties/bow ties, blouses, formal dresses or skirts, and formal shoes.