A team of students from the University of Notre Dame placed second in the competition held recently in Scottsdale, Arizona.

With the support of a faculty advisor and a manager from Deloitte & Touche LLP, the teams of undergraduate accounting students work to provide solutions to complex case studies involving real-world financial accounting issues.

Each student team then presents their case results to a panel of active and retired Deloitte partners, who assume the roles of a client company's senior management or audit committee members. At the seminar's conclusion, the panel selects the student teams that best identify the relevant accounting issues and most effectively present their case.

The competition is funded through contributions from retired partners of the Deloitte US Firms. As first place winners, the school will receive a $10,000 award and each team member will receive a $2,000 scholarship. The second place team will receive a $5,000 award and a $1,000 scholarship for each student. The four other finalist teams will receive $2,500 for their school and a $500 scholarship for each student.

"The National Case Competition provides an excellent forum for students to develop and refine their research and communication skills while building meaningful relationships with others in the accounting profession," said Ervin Black, faculty advisor and associate professor of accounting, Brigham Young University.

In addition to the winners, the four other colleges and universities participating in this year's competition were: University of California – Berkeley, University of Connecticut, University of Illinois and Morehouse College.