The purpose of the ILA Student Case Competition is to provide undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to compete and showcase their knowledge about leadership through the analysis of a contemporary socio-political-economic problem on the global or national level. Teams compete in two divisions, undergraduate and graduate. Through a case executive summary, poster given at the conference, and a final presentation (finalists only), students demonstrate an understanding of their case's underlying leadership issues while developing strategic recommendations for addressing key issues.

The top three teams in each division are recognized at the closing plenary of the ILA conference. The team in each division that takes top honors receives complimentary 1-year memberships in the ILA and a $1,000 cash prize to divide among team members. The Student Case Competition is organized by the Leadership Education Member Interest Group.

"ILA's annual case competition has been an important learning experience for undergraduate leadership students at Gonzaga for the past three years. It is an excellent opportunity to take leadership content and apply it to real world challenges…. A student recently told me that the ILA case study competition was one of the academic experiences that he was most proud of."

– Josh Armstrong, director of Gonzaga's Comprehensive Leadership Program, reflecting on his participation as a case competition team advisor.

Students, Participate in the 2018 Student Case Competition!

Sign your team up to participate!

Download and View the Complete Details Here (PDF)

Participation in the annual case competition is an amazing opportunity to further develop communication and leadership skills, expand your network of leadership colleagues, and make the most out of your ILA conference experience. Start forming your teams now for this year's competition in West Palm Beach.  

Written executive summaries are due 17 October. Posters will be presented at the conference before a team of judges on Wednesday, 24 October from 19:30-21:00. Team check-in and setup is at 18:30. Teams selected as finalists will make their final presentations Friday, 26 October from 18:30-19:45.

Judges Needed

Are you attending ILA's annual global conference in West Palm Beach? Would you be willing to serve as a judge for the ILA Student Case Competition? Leadership professionals from all sectors are welcome. Help play an important role in the development of leadership students. Judges will be asked to review teams' written briefs prior to the conference as well as attend and judge the poster presentations on Wednesday, 24 October beginning at 19:30 sharp and the final presentations Friday, 26 October from 18:30-19:45. Contact the LEMIG leadership team at casecompetition@ila-net.com to express your interest and engage in this fun, conference tradition!