Wondering if Lundquist College business majors bring a global perspective to the table? Need more proof that the college's business minor can provide a competitive edge for students majoring in other disciplines? Look no further than the winners of this year's University of Oregon-Nyenrode Business Universiteit case competition.
Since 2013, this annual competition has given University of Oregon undergraduates in their senior year the opportunity to compete for scholarships to the master's degree program in management at Nyenrode Business Universiteit, one of Europe's top business schools.
This year's event upped the ante with two full-tuition scholarships and a single half-tuition scholarship in play.
On February 6, thirteen University of Oregon seniors assigned to three different teams tackled a business case involving Lendahand, a Dutch mesofinance organization that harnesses crowdfunding to lend money to entrepreneurs in emerging economies around the world.
The winning team boasted two scholarship winners: Matthew Boehmer "15, a biology major with a business minor; and Nicolette Leigh Zalensky "15, a business major with a minor in Chinese.
For the third scholarship, judges chose to recognize a standout competitor outside of the winning team—the competition's MVP, so to speak. Brendan York "15—a music major with a minor in business—received this honor.
In addition to the scholarships, each of the three winners will receive a stipend to help defray travel and living expenses.
For scholarship winner Zalensky, the most surprising part of the competition was how easily her team was able to collaborate.
“None of us had ever worked together before, and we all gelled right away. The brainstorming and presentation process truly was a team effort," she said.
Winning is sweet, of course, but Zalensky believes that simply competing offers plenty of rewards on its own.
“This competition tests your abilities in what I think is the most accurate representation of how you would brainstorm and pitch ideas at a job," she said. “If you think you want to work internationally, then you should really consider this opportunity."