Here we are, for part 2.

This is a follow-up to one of my previous articles, “World Scholars Cup Dubai Regionals 2025.”

However, I’m not here to write about the regional round, but the one that we qualified for. The WSC Global round.

World Scholars Cup’s long-awaited Dubai winter Global rounds had started up once again. An annual ritual that’s long-awaited.

A quick recap;

Of course, it’s the World Scholars Cup. An iconic event, the only one of its kind. WSC, also known as the World Scholars Cup, is an active platform where participants showcase their skills in debate, essay writing, and quiz taking. Many people around the world are well aware of them and their team. This article is to commemorate the most recent round that I attended, the Dubai winter Global Round, 2025.

Back to the present…

Unlike the regional rounds, we didn’t plunge straight into academic events at the first bell. Instead, the opening ceremony gave way to a true WSC global tradition: the infamous Scavenge Hunt. Here, scholars, yes, that’s what we are called here, were thrown into random groups, united by a single goal: to conquer a series of odd and quirky tasks scattered across the sprawling venue. And what a venue it was: Global Village, a perfect backdrop for this adventure. The tasks ranged from clever icebreakers that nudged us to learn about our teammates, to outlandish quests—like rushing to ‘Russia’ at breakneck speed.

Coming to our first event, we were in the morning debate wave, so we had a debate first. Our 3 person group rushed our way through the corridors, occasionally walking past our room numbers and running back once we realised what we did. The debate topics were not the usual, of course. WSC has a knack for pulling up topics from the farthest corners of the web. A brilliant experience. There were three debates in total, and our team won all three.

Coming to our second event, collaborative writing. As a person who enjoys writing, this was the event that I enjoyed most in comparison to all the others. Previously, in the regional round, WSC would first give us a list of 3 topics, from which each team member would choose one topic. Now, we were given four topics, out of which each teammate would write about one. My team and I brainstormed on our topics and came up with epic story lines, with interesting connections to the WSC syllabus. We were given 20 minutes to brainstorm and 40 minutes to write, which included no talking. After which, we got 15 minutes to check over each other’s work.

This is our next event, the Scholars Challenge. This and the scholar’s bowl are the events that we studied beforehand. All the teams were separated for this since they would be writing the multiple-choice quiz on their own. We were given a little more than an hour to complete this 120-question quiz. I believe time flew during this event, which is part of the fun, right?

Coming to the scholar’s bowl, an event with unlimited amounts of joy and heartache. Heartache being the by-product of one’s love for the WSC syllabus. Anyway, in this event, scholars would use their teamwork and their brains to solve questions, with a clicker, based on the questions that are put up on stage. This is basically like the scholar’s challenge, but this time we work as a group. The noise levels were…debatable. I wonder if anyone else thought we were uncivilised.

Coming up was the Scholars’ talent show, where global scholars showcase their talent. The participants of this lovely event will have the chance to exhibit their talents on the global stage. I had the incredible opportunity to perform a Bharatnatyam piece at this very showcase, a moment where the vibrant rhythms of classical Indian dance echoed across the stage. The audience was extremely encouraging to the participants up on stage, and with the number of songs performed, it seemed like a concert.

Next, we had the Debate showcase, in which the best debaters from each country will form new teams, proposition and opposition, along with a student judge panel, and will take part in a debate on stage. The best debaters face off against each other on whether their side of the motion is correct, and in the end, the panel of judges decides who stood most firm with their point. I had the honour of being a part of this judge panel. At the end of the debate, during the time the judges decide, students from the audience are allowed to put in their inputs regarding the motion. We, judges, had quiet the time deciding the winner as well as the feedback that we needed to give them. Applause would be ringing through your ears even after the showcase. And with that, we come to the end of the academic parts of the World Scholars Cup.

The Cultural Fair transforms the venue into a Global extravaganza. Amidst a sea of vibrant traditional dress, scholars move through rows of stalls draped in national flags and handmade crafts. The air is a rich tapestry of scents, from aromatic spices to local sweets, while the room echoes with the sounds of folk music and the enthusiastic chatter of students teaching one another phrases in dozens of different languages.  

Coming to our final event, the Award ceremony. This is the long-awaited conclusion of the World Scholars Cup, the one where you find out whether you qualified for the Tournament of Champions, and the other achievements you have been able to showcase over the span of five days. Applause and other inhuman sounds echo through the auditorium while prize winners run up on stage. This is an extremely hyped-up part of the entire event because of the excitement of all the members of the Junior division. My team and I had won multiple team and individual awards. 3rd place scholars’ challenge, 6th place in the team debate and 4th place in team writing. My individual awards included gold in debate, quiz and writing. Our team was the runner-up qualifier to the Tournament of Champions at Yale from the junior division.

As we approach our actual final event, the Scholars Ball, it is an incredible sight to behold. This event was held at a hotel near the school where WSC was hosted, and it truly was a wild experience. With lights flashing and music blaring, it served as the last opportunity for everyone to connect one final time with the friends they made at WSC.

And with that, we come to the end of the World Scholars Cup global round. However, don’t think it’s over yet, for the teams that qualified for the TOC, us included, the last and final round is just around the corner!