A Review of THIMUN The Hague: The Reference Conference for THIMUN Procedure

A Review of THIMUN the Hague: the Reference Conference for THIMUN Procedure

A delegate stands at the podium, fifteen minutes into a speech on Security Council reform. Around the room, other delegates listen. Nobody has raised a placard to motion for a moderated caucus. Nobody can: the rules do not allow it. That single structural fact, the total absence of moderated caucus in THIMUN procedure, defines everything that happens in committee at THIMUN The Hague.

If you have done Model United Nations at a conference using Harvard-style rules, the room here will feel different. No delegate motions for a speaker to yield time. No one calls for a caucus to steer debate toward a sub-topic. The dais controls the agenda from start to finish through a formal speakers' list. Debate proceeds at a steady, diplomatic pace. The real work of writing resolutions happens during scheduled lobbying periods, not in snatched moments of unmoderated time.

You have been assigned to THIMUN The Hague and need to know what the next few days actually look like. You are a faculty advisor deciding whether the trip fits your delegation's goals. Or you are an experienced delegate who has heard that THIMUN is different but has never seen the rules in action. This guide walks you through it.

THIMUN Procedure Explained: No Moderated Caucus and the Speakers’ List

THIMUN procedure is a yield-based rules system. The core speaking format is the speakers' list, maintained by the rapporteur. When a delegate finishes a speech with a yield to the chair, the chair may open the floor for points of information or move directly to the next speaker. A yield to another delegate passes the floor to that delegate for a follow-up speech. A yield to points of information allows questions, usually one to three at the chair's discretion.

There is no motion for a moderated caucus. There is no formal unmoderated caucus. The lobbying phase, a scheduled block of time, serves the drafting function that unmoderated caucus serves at Harvard-style conferences. During lobbying, participants move around the room to form blocs, discuss policy, and write working papers. The dais does not run this period; it supervises.

Points of order are restricted to procedural matters only. Right of reply is permitted only for factual or personal insults, granted at the chair's discretion. There is no direct questioning of a speaker except via points of information after a yield. These constraints produce a formal, diplomatic tone that distinguishes THIMUN from the faster, more confrontational style of conferences like NAIMUN or HMUN.

THIMUN Delegation Requirements: Why You Cannot Attend Alone

THIMUN The Hague is a delegation-only conference. The THIMUN Foundation does not accept individual registrations. A student must be part of a school delegation, accompanied by a faculty advisor. This is not a policy the conference plans to change; it is structural to how the conference manages country assignments, supervision, and safeguarding.

Delegation sizes range from 2 to over 50 students per school, depending on the school's approval and the size of its MUN programme. Submit your school's application between March and April for the following January session. Request preferred country assignments. The THIMUN Foundation allocates based on past participation, delegation size, and balance across committees. A school with no prior attendance record may receive a less desirable assignment than one that has attended for years.

For the faculty advisor managing a budget, the requirement means sending enough students to cover the range of committees offered. A school sending only two delegates has limited options. A school sending twenty can cover multiple General Assembly committees, ECOSOC, specialised agencies, and the Security Council simulation.

The Hague MUN Conference: What Makes This One Distinct

THIMUN The Hague is the oldest and largest THIMUN procedure conference, first held in 1968. The session runs five days, Monday to Friday in January, at the World Forum Convention Center in The Hague. The working language is English. The conference hosts several thousand participants from roughly 200 schools, representing over 100 countries. These numbers change annually; the THIMUN Foundation publishes the current figures on its site before each session.

Consensus-Driven Resolution Building

What sets this conference apart is its commitment to consensus-driven resolution building. The default voting method is consensus. A substantive vote occurs only if consensus fails. The goal is not to defeat an opponent's resolution but to merge working papers into a single draft resolution that the majority of the committee supports. Amendment voting happens before the resolution is voted on. The dais handles friendly and unfriendly amendments differently.

The conference does not offer crisis committees. There are no real-time fictional scenarios, no directives, no individual delegate resources to manage. All committees are either General Assembly style, ECOSOC, specialised agencies, regional bodies, the Security Council simulation (15 delegations, P5 plus ten elected members), the International Court of Justice, or the Advisory Panel. Each committee produces resolutions or, in the case of the ICJ, verdicts.

THIMUN Consensus Resolution Building: from Working Paper to Draft Resolution

The resolution process at THIMUN The Hague follows a fixed sequence. Understand it before you walk into committee.

The Lobbying Phase

After the dais opens the committee and establishes the speakers' list, a scheduled lobbying period begins. Form blocs based on policy alignment, not school affiliation. The goal during lobbying is to write a working paper, an informal precursor to a draft resolution. Blocs that hold similar positions on the agenda topic are expected to merge their working papers rather than compete. A bloc that refuses to merge may find itself isolated when the dais calls for consolidation.

From Working Paper to Draft Resolution

Once a working paper has enough support and is formatted correctly with preambulatory and operative clauses, submit it to the dais for approval. The dais checks for formatting, contradictions, and plagiarism. If approved, the working paper becomes a draft resolution and is assigned a number. The main submitter and co-submitters are recorded. There are no single-author resolutions at THIMUN.

Amendment Drafting

After the draft resolution is introduced, you may submit amendments. Friendly amendments, accepted by the main submitter, are incorporated directly. Unfriendly amendments, opposed by the main submitter, are debated and voted on. The dais rules on which amendments are in order. The amendment volume in a committee indicates how contested the drafting process was. A resolution passed with zero amendments may reflect genuine consensus or a dais that suppressed dissent.

Consensus and Voting

The committee attempts to adopt the draft resolution by consensus. If no objections are raised, the resolution passes without a substantive vote. If objections are raised, the dais may call for a vote. This structure rewards representatives who can negotiate mergers and build broad support, not those who deliver the most aggressive speeches.

Attribute	Value
Organising body	THIMUN Foundation
Host city	The Hague, Netherlands
Conference level	Secondary school (ages 14-19)
Working language	English
Admission model	School delegations only; no individual registration
Delegation size range	2-50+ delegates per school
Typical total delegate count	3,000-3,500 [annual, verify with THIMUN Foundation]
Typical number of participating schools	200-250 [annual, verify]
Year of first session	1968
Session month	January [annual]
Session duration	5 days (Monday-Friday)
Venue	World Forum Convention Center, The Hague
Rules of procedure	THIMUN procedure (yield-based, consensus-oriented)
Procedure family	THIMUN-style
Voting method	Consensus by default; substantive vote only if consensus fails
Position paper requirement	Required for all delegates
Awards	No individual delegate awards; informal recognition only
Crisis committees	Not offered
Typical number of committees	30-40 [annual, verify]

THIMUN Procedure vs Harvard Procedure: the Real Difference

Many delegates arrive at THIMUN The Hague having only experienced Harvard-style procedure at conferences like HMUN, NAIMUN, or ILMUNC. The two procedural families have not converged in decades, and the difference structures the entire delegate experience.

What Harvard Style Does

Harvard-style conferences use moderated caucus and unmoderated caucus as primary negotiating tools. Delegates motion to suspend the speakers' list for a moderated caucus on a specific sub-topic, with short speaking times. Unmoderated caucus allows bloc formation and resolution drafting on the floor. Resolutions are authored by blocs during unmoderated time and introduced as finished documents. The dais awards Best Delegate, Outstanding Delegate, and Honourable Mention gavels. The culture rewards quick thinking, assertive speaking, and coalition building under time pressure.

What THIMUN Style Does

THIMUN style has no moderated caucus. There is no motion to suspend the rules. The dais sets the agenda through a formal speakers' list, and debate proceeds at a measured pace. The lobbying phase is a scheduled period, not a motion that delegates can call for at any time. Resolution building happens incrementally: blocs write working papers, merge them, submit a draft resolution, and then amend it on the floor. There are no individual delegate awards. The culture rewards diplomacy, careful drafting, and the ability to build consensus across a large bloc.

Which One Is Harder

Neither is harder; they select for different skills. A delegate who excels at Harvard style because they can think on their feet in a moderated caucus may struggle with THIMUN style, which requires patient negotiation during lobbying and precise drafting of preambulatory and operative clauses. A delegate who prepares a thorough study guide and position paper but speaks infrequently will be invisible at HMUN but may find more recognition at THIMUN through bloc leadership.

What to Expect in Committee at THIMUN the Hague

Committee sessions run Monday through Friday, with the final day reserved for voting and closing ceremonies. Each committee has a dais of three to four members: the chair, who moderates debate and rules on procedure; the co-chair, who assists; and the rapporteur, who manages the speakers' list, documents, and roll call.

A session begins with roll call, followed by opening speeches from delegates on the speakers' list. After several speeches, the dais may call for a lobbying period. During lobbying, leave your seat. Form a bloc. Write working papers. The dais circulates to answer questions but does not participate in drafting. Arrive without a study guide or position paper and you will struggle during this phase, because you have no policy foundation to negotiate from.

The dress code is Western business formal: a suit jacket and tie, or equivalent formal attire for all genders. This is enforced. Arrive in business casual and you may be asked to leave the committee room.

Position papers are required for all delegates and must be submitted to committee chairs in advance. The typical length is one to two pages per agenda topic, covering the assigned country's policy, past international actions, and proposed solutions. The dais reads these papers. At a conference of several thousand participants, some may be skimmed, but a well-written position paper that demonstrates research from the study guide will improve the dais's perception of you.

There are no individual delegate awards. No Best Delegate gavel. No Outstanding Delegate certificate. Recognition comes informally, through speech opportunities, chair feedback, and the quiet satisfaction of seeing your language in a passed resolution. If your goal is to collect gavels for your school's trophy case, THIMUN The Hague is not the conference for you.

What to Prepare Before You Arrive

Read the Study Guide

The dais publishes a study guide for each committee several weeks before the conference. This document outlines the committee's topic, history, and questions to address. It is the starting point for all research. Skip the study guide and rely on general knowledge of the topic, and you will find yourself unable to negotiate specific clauses during lobbying.

Write Your Position Paper

The position paper is your pre-conference statement of the assigned country's stance on each agenda item. Follow the standard format: topic background, past international action, country policy, proposed solutions. Submit it on time. A late or missing position paper disqualifies you from any recognition the dais might offer.

Know Your Bloc Strategy

You cannot pass a resolution alone. Identify which blocs are likely to form based on the study guide and your country's policy. Enter lobbying without knowing who your natural allies are and you will waste time forming weak blocs that collapse during amendment drafting.

Prepare for the Speakers' List

Prepare a one-minute opening speech that states your country's position and signals willingness to negotiate. A speech that reads directly from the position paper is forgettable. A speech that names specific clauses you want to see in a merged resolution shows the dais and other participants that you understand how the process works.

Failure Modes to Avoid at THIMUN the Hague

The invisible delegate attends every session but never speaks, submits no written work, and is forgotten by the dais. In a large committee, the dais cannot notice everyone. If you do not speak, you do not exist. Force yourself onto the speakers' list early, even if your first speech is imperfect.

The resolution that passes unread happens when a bloc with a majority pushes through a draft resolution whose clauses are contradictory or poorly drafted. The dais is supposed to catch this, but under time pressure, it sometimes does not. Take no shortcuts during lobbying. Read every clause of your working paper aloud before submission.

Position paper disqualification is the most common preventable failure. Delegates misunderstand the submission deadline, submit in the wrong format, or plagiarise from the study guide. The dais checks for plagiarism. Submit your own work on time.

Bloc collapse during lobbying occurs when a bloc forms on social affinity rather than policy alignment. Four delegates who are friends but disagree on the substance of the topic will not produce a coherent draft resolution. Find allies based on policy, not on which school they attend.