Ithaca College

The teams are set and the 139 students involved are planning how to invest their $500,000 in the first annual Ithaca College School of Business High School Virtual Investment Competition.

Fourteen high schools in the Northeast have signed up a total of thirty-two teams in the inaugural event.  The High School Investment Competition brings real-world investment tactics into these high school classrooms.  Students will learn basic principles in the stock market, various sectors, fundamentals of real-time trading, and the opportunity to win great prizes! 

“We’re very excited to host such a great event.  Our competition gives these high school students real-world experience, an opportunity to interact with finance faculty and CTC members, and an inside look at what current School of Business students have access too.  We look forward to building new relationships with these students.” said Dean Mary Ellen Zuckerman.

Teams composed of 3-6 student members ranging from 10th to 12th grades will receive $500,000 in virtual US dollars and build a portfolio that consists of five to twenty stocks. After their initial investment, teams will have a series of five check-points where they can reallocate their funds.  Portfolios will be scored and posted each week.

Professor Abraham Mulugetta states, "It will be an exciting learning adventure for students. It will ignite students' curiosity to learn what will drive the price of stocks and how to make group decisions based on individual inputs. Students will learn to share their opinion, respect each others perspectives, and make a consensus decision to build a portfolio.  Every month they will decide whether or not to change the composition of the portfolio for the duration of the competition."

Later this fall, teams and their faculty advisors, along with student family members, will be invited to the School of Business for a live portfolio performance ranking, tour of facility and Trading Room, and an opportunity to meet with finance faculty members, students, and Core Trading Consultant members. 

The competition concludes at the end of March and the top three teams will be welcomed back for an award ceremony.

Visit the Investment Competition site for a list of participating teams and to follow the weekly standing.