April 27, 2020
A team of four students from the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy won first place at the 6th annual Duke-UNC National Case Competition, where they applied their pharmaceutical knowledge to a real-life business case.
The yearly competition provides an opportunity for graduate and professional students from Duke, UNC and other colleges to work on a team consulting project. The Graduate Business & Consulting Club at UNC-Chapel Hill, along with the Duke Advanced Professional Degree Consulting Club organize the contest as a way for graduate students to explore careers besides industry and/or academia.
UNC Pharm.D.-MPH dual-degree student Amy Guisinger; Pharm.D. candidate Andrew Stenger; Ph.D. candidate Erin Scholtz; and Pharm.D. student Jefferson Pike Jr. won for their project as “Team Consulting Contenders.”
“Everyone had prior experience in either consulting or the pharmaceutical industry – but each team member brought something unique to the table as well,” Pike said.
For their pitch, the team consulted biopharmaceutical company TNT Bio on which immunology drug they should focus on developing. There were two rounds of judging: one featuring local biotechnology and employees, and a final round with representatives from national firms. Due to COVID-19, the students didn’t meet the judges in-person and presented their final idea over a Zoom voiceover; however, Pike said it was still a great experience virtually.
“Participating in this case competition was truly a rewarding experience,” Guisinger said. “I believe our success was due to our trusting team dynamics, everyone’s diverse skill sets and our team’s ability to have fun while solving this biopharmaceutical case problem.”
Guisinger said they were able to succeed by making a hypothesis and delegating based on each team member’s strengths and experiences, then meeting as a group to decide how they would pitch to the judges.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with such an inspiring and intelligent group of students,” she said. “I look forward to participating in other case competitions and workshops in the future.”
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