The University of Kentucky MBA case competition team at the Gatton College of Business and Economics placed 3rd in the 8th Annual 2021 SEC MBA Case Competition, hosted (virtually) this year at the University of Auburn’s Raymond J. Harbert College of Business. This MBA level competition provides an opportunity for SEC MBA students to showcase their skills at solving complex, real-world problems that cover the spectrum of business disciplines. 

The students representing Gatton's full-time, One Year MBA program this year included Emilee Olsen, Heather Pitts, Luke Fish and Kelly Swanson.

“We are extremely proud of our student team, and how they represented our program,” says Karl Gustafson, MBA Academic Director at the Gatton College of Business and Economics who served as the faculty coach for the student team. “They did a great job preparing for the competition and excelled with the case, competing against some of the best MBA students from across the SEC this year.”

Current student Heather Pitts also won an individual award for the best question and answer session. 

"Competing in the SEC MBA Case Competition has been the highlight of my MBA experience," says Pitts. "This competition is a strategic pressure cooker that brings out the best of everyone’s learned and experienced knowledge to make an impact on corporate strategy -- which has the potential to change how companies serve their consumers. Most of all, it polishes all your skills for real-world application and delivery. I couldn’t think of a better experience to round out the UK MBA program." 

The Gatton College of Business and Economics and the UK MBA program are thankful for the SEC, Auburn University’s Harbert College of Business, and this year’s corporate client, Aflac, for providing a great experience for the students.

"Participating in the 2021 SEC MBA Case Competition was a great learning experience for me, as I gained knowledge from working with my teammates and from our team advisor Karl Gustafson," says Kelly Swanson. "Taking what we have learned throughout the UK MBA program and applying it to a business case was a valuable and fun experience. To place well against other SEC schools was exciting and rewarding after all the hard work our team put in."

The University of Kentucky's Gatton College of Business and Economics is excited to host the SEC MBA Case Competition in 2022.