Competing against eight other university teams, the UCR School of Business team earned second place during their inaugural appearance at the 29th Annual Information Technology Competition. The contest was hosted by the Management Information Systems Student Association at Cal Poly Pomona on April 26, and it brought together students from across Southern California to showcase their technical expertise, problem-solving skills, and ability to present in a professional setting.
“Teams chose a category to compete in, and ours was data analytics,” says Gina Gardea, co-vice president of the UCR Association for Information Systems student organization, which supported and sent the team. The competition was designed to simulate challenges professionals face in the workplace, testing both technical knowledge and business communication skills.
Three weeks before the event, the UCR team received the IT-related case study they were expected to analyze. The students were tasked with creating a proposal and supporting slideshow, ultimately presenting their findings as if they were consultants pitching to potential shareholders. During the competition, the six judges evaluated the teams not only on the accuracy of their technical solutions, but also on their creativity, clarity of presentation, and ability to respond to follow-up questions. This structure made the contest a valuable opportunity to gain experience that closely mirrors real-world consulting and analytics scenarios.
The UCR students drew on a wide range of skills to develop their solution. They used Python for data cleaning and visualization, while Power BI allowed them to design dashboards that communicated insights clearly and effectively. “Using these skills to compete in a near real-world scenario was a really comprehensive learning experience,” says Gardea. “Our team’s thinking processes, presentation methods, and knowledge from business classes helped make us competitive.”
UCR’s team members—Javier Becerril ’25, Wafa Suhir ’28, Ananya Pandit ’28, Sanvi Srinivas ’27 and Muhammad Sabeel ’26—are all active members of the UCR Association for Information Systems. Beyond the competition, they regularly enhance their technical and professional abilities through quarterly workshops offered by the association. These workshops focus on industry-relevant skills such as database management, visualization tools, and software platforms, giving students practical experience to complement their classroom learning. “The competition was a perfect opportunity to polish these skills,” adds Gardea, noting how rewarding it felt to see their efforts recognized during their very first appearance.
The second-place finish carried extra weight because UCR was competing against universities with longer histories at the event. “We competed against schools such as UC Irvine and Cal State Long Beach, and they had participated before,” says Gardea. “As newcomers, we managed to place second and receive personal congratulations from the judges.”
This success highlights not only the talent of UCR’s students but also the support provided by the School of Business and student organizations like the Association for Information Systems. By blending classroom learning with hands-on experiences, UCR continues to prepare its students to succeed in professional settings where both technical ability and communication skills are essential.
__________________
Header image (from left to right): Javier Becerril ’25, Wafa Suhir ’28, Ananya Pandit ’28, Sanvi Srinivas ’27 and Muhammad Sabeel ’26.