No. For many delegates, HMCME is their first Harvard Model Congress conference and students of all skill levels are welcome!

The conference is three days long and consists of committee sessions and full chamber sessions. Throughout the conference, students are briefed on the most important political issues facing the specific governing body they are simulating. They are tasked with creating bills and resolutions to address these problems. Delegates participate in committees that correspond to real congressional or departmental deciding body. In committee, delegates are guided by chairs entirely comprised of Harvard students. The delegates structure the debate by implementing parliamentary procedure and debating skills to convey their arguments and organize to secure passage of bills. This takes place all while students are being taught about key issues and presentational skills by our team of Harvard staffers. The conference culminates in an award ceremony that recognizes outstanding delegates.

Faculty members have much flexibility during the day. Faculty advisors often spend most of their day observing their students in committee and full sessions. Faculty advisors are also welcome to relax in the faculty lounge where HMC Middle East provides coffee and snacks. Faculty advisors also attend a faculty advisor meeting once to twice a day. These meetings are an opportunity for the faculty advisors to share feedback as well as an opportunity for our faculty liaison, Simran Tamang, to update faculty on conference events. Simran is the point of contact for any issue a faculty advisor might have and is available via email at info@hmcme.org.

Currently, there are no restrictions on the size of a delegation from each school. We encourage delegations of all sizes to apply to HMCME. All delegations are required to be accompanied by a faculty-advisor which can be a teacher, faculty member, or parent.

Our conference hosts high school students, usually between the ages of 14 and 18, though we have had younger and older students attend in the past!

Any high school student is welcome to attend HMC Middle East - even if their school is not attending. In fact, we have had independent students attend the conference every year since its inception. Independent students are responsible for the delegate fee. They must register as individual delegates on the registration page.

Domestic committees simulate the two chambers of American Congress: the House and the Senate. The international committees, on the other hand, simulate various international bodies of policy cooperation. Domestic committees tend to use a style of debate that adheres more closely to parliamentary procedure. International committees may vary in committee style depending on the topic of the debate and the preferences of both staff and delegates.

All delegates are expected to have read the briefings for their committee and completed their respective pre-conference assignments. While those are the minimum necessary requirements, any and all further research regarding your topic and your committee is highly encouraged! We will publish a research guide for delegates and a “Teaching HMC” guide for faculty in the fall to help guide preparation!

You can find the briefings that you are required to read under the committee tab.  To conduct further research on your topics, be sure to refer to the “Guide to Further Research” section of each briefing.  Otherwise, be sure to keep up on the current events surrounding your topic!

Yes!  While you may not agree fully or at all with the views of your assigned role, you are expected to represent them to the best of your ability.  Think of this as a great opportunity to practice your argumentation skills and think critically about all sides of the issues at hand.

HMCME is a tech-free conference. We encourage active and enthusiastic collaboration among delegates, and find that technology distracts from this goal. Please prepare accordingly, by bringing pens and paper and printing out speeches ahead of time.