Enrolling at the University After Role-Playing. Assessing How the “National Model United Nations” Experience Influences High-School Students’ Decisions

The literature on simulations and role-playing has focused on the ways through which new ways of teaching political science and international relations enrich and improve the students’ learning experience. Recent research has provided empirical evidence to properly assess the role played by unconventional learning activities such as games and simulations in affecting students’ knowledge and perceptions. In line with this existing research effort, the paper aims at evaluating how the participation to the “National Model United Nations” (NMUN) has influenced high-school students’ decisions to enroll at university. Our main argument is that attending at the NMUN represents a driving factor in affecting the students’ choices on enrollment. The study is based on extensive empirical material, collected through questionnaires submitted to hundreds of high-school students before and after the preparatory classes and the NMUN conference in New York.