During the four-day national competition, the undergraduates competed in the same categories held in the state competition – marketing concepts, microeconomics, and management analysis and decision making. After successfully finishing the first round – a comprehensive written test – Hart and Spencer moved on to the final stage of the contest, where they were tasked with completing a case study exercise. After a challenging presentation in front of competition judges, the team’s hard work paid off. Hart and Spencer were awarded sixth place in the management analysis and decision making category.
“Taking the skills that we’ve learned in the classroom and being able to apply them in the real-world is a great feeling,” Spencer said.
“Just being a part of this competition was amazing. I couldn’t even process it for the first couple of days,” Hart added.
Hart and Spencer said the conference also included several informative workshops and allowed for great networking opportunities with fellow students from across the United States. During their downtime, they got to explore the city, taste the local cuisine and visit prominent landmarks such as Millennium Park, Willis Tower (commonly referred to as Sears Tower) and the Art Institute of Chicago.