Student Participation in Case Competitions

How can you improve critical thinking and presentation skills?  Experience emotion, from heart-pounding tension to exhilaration?  And do this all in as little as three hours?  The answer of course, is to participate in a student case competition.

It has been my pleasure over the last six years, to assist many accounting student teams in their preparation.  The actual competition may occur over a few hours or a few days but teams spend many advance hours in training. They say “practice makes perfect” and my teams get lots of practice analyzing past cases covering a variety of accounting and management issues. They identify the issues, consider alternatives, formulate a strategy for action and then do a ‘mock’ presentation for me following the structure required for that particular competition. This often requires the team to do a 15-20 minute oral presentation supported by powerpoint slides.

I am often amazed at the enthusiasm shown by the student participants who may be balancing a heavy course load, part-time job, campus volunteer activities, and even, occasionally, a social life. Yet they willingly commit their time to represent SFU at a case competition.

If I have the opportunity to attend the competition, I am always proud to watch my teams compete. During training, I watch the improvement in a team’s analytical skill and the professionalism of their presentations. Regardless of the final result, on the actual day of competition it is very satisfying to see the team do the very best that it can.

And what’s the benefit to students who volunteer to participate in case competitions?  Well, they’ll have an opportunity to meet students from other universities, see how their skills measure up, and be amazed by their ability to work in a team, under pressure.  The comment I hear most often after a competition has ended is “Wow, I learned a lot, it was a really great experience”.  And that’s what University should be – learning and experiences, not just term papers and exams.

Anne Macdonald, Senior Lecturer
Accounting Team Coach (JDC, ICBC, CASB CA Case Competition)