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The Student Investment Fund (SIF) program has received international recognition not once, but twice recently. Masters of business administration candidates Jeff Mott and Dan Slipp, along with bachelor of business administration student Josh Bubar placed second in the world at the Argus Real Estate competition and first in the Van Berkom Small Cap Case Competition, surpassing nine other universities across the world.

Jeff Mott credited his training through the SIF program for the team’s competitive edge.

“The Argus Challenge was a complex case with many moving parts,” he said. This called upon all of the skills and experience developed in the SIF program.”

The SIF team competed against 18 other universities from around the globe. The University of San Diego placed first, UNB placed second and Florida International University placed third, while the University of Edinburgh received an honourable mention.  

Josh Bubar enjoyed the opportunity to apply his training to a real estate investment scenario.

“The Argus Challenge provided an excellent opportunity to get out of our comfort zone and apply theoretical valuation concepts to a practical real world asset class,” he said.

Most of the competing schools offer Master of Science in Real Estate programs or have real estate concentrations. The UNB team applied valuation principles acquired through their participation in the Student Investment Fund to the real estate industry.

“It is a testament to the Student Investment Fund that our valuation knowledge can be adapted to all forms of asset valuation,” said Daniel Slipp. “We competed and held our own against some of the best real estate programs in North America.”

The Student Investment Fund oversees the management of an eight million dollar portfolio using a balanced fund mandate and equity neutral strategy. Five leading commercial real estate experts judged the challenge and the students were awarded US$4,000 for their efforts.

UNB team comes out on top at global small cap competition 

Less than a week later, the SIF team finished on top at the prestigious Van Berkom Small Cap Case Competition, hosted by the John Molson School of Business at Concordia in Montreal. The prestigious two-day competition sponsored by Van Berkom Associates challenged students with a live case analyzing actual companies. Universities participating included the University of Toronto (Rotman), Western University (Ivey), Queen’s, Simon Fraser and the University of Saskatchewan. International universities participating in the competition included the University of Pittsburgh and Kent State.

The students credit their training with the Student Investment Fund in preparing them for this competition.

“The practical experience gained in SIF, alloyed with the strong academic foundation put us at an advantage. It is a good feeling when the senior partner at one of the most successful asset management firms flat out tells us – you guys nailed it,” says Jeff Mott.

Teammate Josh Bubar echoed that sentiment and added that the experience they gained from participating in other competitions really helped them.

“Every judge commented on our ability to effectively convey our investment thesis, with one declaring it the best he has seen in the three iterations of the competition he’d been involved in,” said Bubar.

Overall the team is happy with the results, especially since this win came within two days of earning second place in the world in the ARGUS University Challenge. While they appreciate the cash prize ($3,000 to split between them) the biggest win for them is that they showed that UNB and the Student Investment Fund produce graduates who are the among the very best at their craft.

Media contact: Lizabeth Lemon-Mitchell