2012 Research Challenge winning team and
CFA Institute staff at the NASDAQ closing bell
The CFA Institute Research Challenge gathers together:
- university students,
- investment industry professionals,
- publicly traded companies, and
- corporate sponsors
for local, regional, and global competition.
This annual educational initiative promotes best practices in equity research through hands-on mentoring and intensive training in company analysis and presentation skills.
Additionally, all participants are introduced to and held to the standard of the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.
How the Research Challenge Works
Local hosts – typically our member societies – and CFA Institute host and launch local competitions involving teams of three to five university students who work directly with a local, publicly-traded company in researching and preparing a company analysis.
Each team works with an investment professional who mentors the team during the research process and who reviews and critiques the team's company analysis report.
The report is reviewed and scored by a group of judges and the teams' final presentations are locally evaluated by high-profile panels of experts from top financial institutions. The team with the highest combined score wins the local competition and advances to a regional competition in the Americas, Asia Pacific, or Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA) region. The winners of the regional competitions advance to the global final.
Learn more about how the Research Challenge works and how to get involved.
Benefits of Participation
Real-World Training for Students: University students participating in the Research Challenge interact with investment professionals and top firms while getting real-world experience in equity analysis, sell-side research report writing, and presentation skills.
Investment Professionals Make an Impact on the Profession: Investment professionals have the opportunity to teach best practices and promote ethical decision making to the next generation of financial professionals.
Public Companies Promote Education and Analyst Independence: Companies give back to the community and tap into local talent while gaining unbiased research and opinions from student teams.
Universities Gain Global Exposure: Universities gain international media attention, which can help set the university apart from other business schools.
Corporate Sponsors Reach Universities, Students, and Finance Professionals: Corporate sponsors can reach local, regional, and global markets by sponsoring the CFA Institute Research Challenge.
Find out more about the Research Challenge, learn how to get involved, or contact the Research Challenge team.