Competitions offer opportunities for Leeds MBA students to test their skills against MBA students from other programs. These events also provide important networking potential, giving students exposure to judging panels of influential business leaders. Our students have an impressive record of performance in local, national and international competitions, besting teams from many of the top MBA programs.

Annual Case Competitions

Natural and Organic Case Competition (NOCC)

Register by October 11, 2020. Competition runs October 22, 2020 – October 30, 2020

This regional competition engages talented students with pressing business and social impact challenges in the natural products industry, including data-driven decision making, supply chain sustainability and sales strategy with conscious consumers.

The N&OCC is followed by a networking reception where natural and organic food companies have the opportunity to meet and recruit graduate students. Learn more at https://www.colorado.edu/business/cesr/events/N-and-O-competition

Run by: CESR

Net Impact Case Competition (NICC)

Register by October 27, 2020. Competition runs Nov 11-20, 2020

The premiere MBA competition focused on solving real world sustainability business cases based on a "live" company.

The Leeds Net Impact Case Competition (NICC) is the premiere MBA competition focused on solving real world sustainability business cases. Based on a “live” company case developed in collaboration with a corporate sponsor, the competition attracts teams of students from top rated business schools and future industry leaders to Boulder, Colorado for the two-day event. The competition is an opportunity to bring together students, the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility, executives and businesses that share a common commitment to sustainable business practices and financial returns. This year’s corporate sponsor is Johns Manville, a Berkshire Hathaway Company.

Urban Land Institute (ULI) Gerald D. Hines Student Urban Design Competition

Applications due December, 2020. Competition begins January, 2021

The ULI Hines Student Competition offers graduate students the opportunity to form their own multidisciplinary teams and engage in a challenging exercise in responsible land use.

Teams of five students pursuing degrees in at least three different disciplines have two weeks to devise a development program for a real, large-scale site in a North American city. Teams provide graphic boards and narratives of their proposals including designs and market-feasible financial data.

This is an ideas competition; there is no expectation that anyone will apply the submitted schemes to the site. The winning team receives $50,000 and the finalist teams each receive $10,000.

The ULI Hines Student Competition is part of the Institute’s ongoing effort to raise interest among young people in creating better communities, improving development patterns, and increasing awareness of the need for multidisciplinary solutions to development.

Interdisciplinary Ethics in Tech

January, 2021

Held annually, the Interdisciplinary Ethics Tech Competition gives students a chance to wrestle with a real-world ethics problem in collaboration with a diverse team of students studying law, business, communication, journalism, engineering, ITP, information science, or computer science.

Past case problems have featured a tech company grappling with ethical obligations related to its facial expression recognition product, and an online platform's efforts to address the challenges presented by "fake news."

The competition provides students with the unique opportunity to work as part of an interdisciplinary team on a problem involving ethical, legal, business, technology, and privacy issues similar to what they are likely to encounter after graduation. This hands-on learning experience prepares students to collaborate effectively across disciplines in their careers, and positions students to be ethical members of business management teams. Learn more at https://www.colorado.edu/law/academics/daniels-fund-ethics-initiative-co...

Run by: The Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Collegiate Program at Leeds and Colorado Law

Venture Capital Investment Competition

February 1, 2021

VCIC simulates the entire investment process in an extremely condensed time period, providing students with a first-hand glimpse into the world of venture capital.

The Venture Capital Investment Competition began in 1998as an educational event for MBAs to learn about venture funding. VCIC simulates the entire investment process in an extremely condensed time period, providing students with a first-hand glimpse into the world of venture capital. Leeds MBA teams have won the Western Regional competition nine times in the past ten years, advancing to the finals each year. The Leeds MBA team took first place in the international finals competition in 2012. The Deming Center for Entrepreneurship has hosted the mountain regionals ever since the competition began.

NAIOP Rocky Mountain Real Estate Challenge

April-May, 2021

Students from the University of Colorado and University of Denver's graduate real estate programs compete by creating development options for a specific property.

The Rocky Mountain Real Estate Challenge is an annual event designed to serve as a learning tool for students of the University of Colorado and University of Denver's graduate real estate programs, while assisting the project sponsor with the development options for the specific property in collaboration with the CU Real Estate Center. Student teams are aided by real estate professionals and architectural/engineering experts to deliver development proposals that determined the highest and best use for the project. This is part of a class for credit, MBAX6620

Run by: CU Real Estate Center

National Ethics Case Competition

April 2021

Each year, a different member institution of the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Collegiate Program hosts the annual National Ethics Case Competition.

Undergraduate teams across the state of Colorado and beyond are presented with a relevant ethical case and act as hired consultants for a firm. Teams are expected to integrate the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Principles of integrity, trust, accountability, transparency, fairness, respect, rule of law, and viability in their analysis and will present to a panel of expert judges. Learn more at https://www.colorado.edu/business/current-students/daniels-fund-ethics-i...

Run by: The Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Collegiate Program at Leeds

Bascom Graduate Case Competition

April 2021

MBA/MS student teams from the University of Colorado complete annually, using a Bascom Case and judged by Bascom (cash prize). This is part of the RE Cases class, MBAX 6695, offered in the Spring.

Run by: CUREC

 

 

 

 

New Venture Challenge (NVC)

Registration Opens: August 24, 2020. Track Semi-Finals & Finals (March) and the NVC Championships (April)

The New Venture Challenge (NVC) connects the CU Boulder campus with the Boulder community to develop and fund entrepreneurial ideas. Participants attend year-round events, network, and collaborate with mentors to refine their ideas and form teams before pitching for funding (up to $100,000!) at the NVC Championships. Learn more at https://www.colorado.edu/nvc/

Business Plan Competition

TBD, end of each semester

The competition challenges students to generate an innovative concept for a product or service and design a comprehensive business plan around it.

As the culmination of the Business Plan Preparation course, the competition challenges students to generate an innovative concept for a product or service and design a comprehensive business plan around it. Local entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and other successful members of the business community serve as the judges. The interaction between students and business professionals is a strength of the Leeds School’s Deming Center for Entrepreneurship and its approach to entrepreneurship education. Organizers of the competition create a real-world environment, which is often the launch pad for new start-ups among Leeds graduates.