VAMUN XXX offers three distinct committee types: General Assembly, Specialized, and Crisis.

General Assembly committees are large in size and scope, and are assigned double delegations (two delegates per country). For these reasons, they tend to be easier to navigate for novice delegates, while still offering a challenge for more experienced delegates because of the need to manage the size of the body..

Specialized committees are smaller in size (30-50 delegates) and tend to be single delegation - one student per country. Suitable for novice and intermediate delegates, specialized committees allow delegates to explore regional issues that are too specific to tackle in a General Assembly committee.

Crisis committees are the smallest and fastest paced committees offered at VAMUN, and allowchairs and crisis staff to be creative with both committee design and topic choice. Joint crises pit delegates from separate committees against each other for an interactive experience masterminded by our expert crisis staff, while other committees place students behind the scenes in fascinating real life simulations of national cabinets and other small governing bodies. Crisis committees are best for delegates who have significant prior Model UN experience, as the committees function best when all delegates are fully engaged in the simulation.

The Jefferson Committee on Diplomacy (JCD) is VAMUN's flagship committee. Delegates on JCD should be very experienced and prepared for a fast-moving, exhilarating  committee. JCD topics and positions will be released later than data for other committees, and may include surprises. The committee can be applied for by following this link to the Application or by going to the JCD tab to the left.

Position Papers:

Position papers are required at VAMUN XXX in all committees unless otherwise indicated by chairs, and they will factor into consideration when committee awards are decided. Position papers are a wonderful opportunity for delegates to put their research to tangible use, and as a way to organize their policy initiatives before the conference. VAMUN asks for position papers to be at least three pages long - one page per topic - although delegates are welcome to write more if they wish. The paper ought to be divided into sections according to the agenda topics, and within those sections, the delegates should first give a general overview of their country's position on the topic, and then proposals on solutions to the issue from their nation's perspective. As pre-written resolutions are not allowed at VAMUN, this section should be a more general approach to the issue, rather than a comprehensive set of solutions.

We ask that all papers be typed, using standard size font, with reasonable margins and spacing. As always, papers must feature clear citations, and we expect a reference page at the end of any papers that have sources cited.

Each chair will post their individual guidelines regarding position papers on their committee page, should they have any. Some of the committees will feature different structures or will not have a pre-assigned agenda, so delegate preparation for those simulations will be left to the discretion of the committee staff.

All position papers should be turned in to the chair during the first committee session.

School Awards:

There will be four school awards presented at VAMUN XXX: 1) The Secretary General's Award for the Best Large Delegation; 2) The Secretary General's Award for the Best Small Delegation; 3) The Under-Secretary General's Award for the Outstanding Large Delegation; 4) The Under-Secretary General's Award for the Outstanding Small Delegation.

Large delegations will be considered as delegations having 25 or more delegates. Small delegations will be considered as delegations having 24 or fewer delegates.

Awards will presented by a point system. Three points will be awarded for every best delegate award. Two points will be awarded for every outstanding delegate award. One point will be awarded for every honorable mention.

If you have any questions please email Andrew Koch.