Key Events

Dates

New England Competition
Date: Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Location: Federal Reserve Bank of Boston

• Preliminary Round: Up to 20 teams compete in the morning for 4 finalist slots.
• Final Round: The 4 finalist teams compete in the afternoon finals.  
• The afternoon Champion team advances to the National Competition in Washington DC.

National Competition
Date: Monday, December 2, 2013
Location: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington DC

• For Champion teams representing the Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and Richmond Districts;
• One team wins the National Championship.

The Task

Each team has a maximum of 15 minutes to make an oral presentation that:

• Analyzes current economic conditions as of the day of competition;
• Provides the team’s economic forecast for the near term;
• Explains timely issues and risks that should receive special attention in formulating monetary policy; and
• Makes and justifies a team recommendation for Fed monetary policy, encompassing both traditional tools and newer tools as warranted.

The most common presentation format is a simulated FOMC meeting, but other formats are allowed provided they cover all the requirements above.

Following the presentation, the team faces 15 minutes of questions from a panel of judges.

New England Competition Details

• Open to college and university undergraduates and community college students.
• Participating schools must be located within the Boston Fed’s District borders (which includes all of New England except Fairfield County CT);
• One team may register per school;
• Minimum of 3 students, and maximum of 5 students, on a team;
• Limited to students who are officially registered full-time or part-time at the school.
• Students on a team do not need to be registered for the same courses.
• Team members may not be Fed employees or interns during the Fall 2013 semester.
• The morning round will be judged by faculty advisors; the afternoon round will be judged by Boston Fed economists.
• Decisions by competition judges are final and cannot be appealed.
• Teams pay their own expenses to the District Competition at the Boston Fed.

Registration

• Team registration is online only. Registration opens on August 15, 2013.  
  
• Only a faculty advisor may register a team.
• Team registration will close when full (20 teams), or on October 4, 2013, whichever comes first.

2011 Results

2012 National Championship

November 27, 2012
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
Washington, DC

2012 National Finalists Videos

• Welcoming Remarks
  Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke
  
• American University (DC)
  Honorable Mention Team
  
• Bentley University (MA)
  First Runner-Up Team
  
• Lafayette College (PA)
  Honorable Mention Team
  
• Northwestern University (IL)
  National Champion Team
  
• Pace University (NY)
  Honorable Mention Team
  
• Closing Remarks
  Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth A. Duke

Caption: New England Champion Team, Bentley University, with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke at the 2012 National Championship.

 

2012 Fed Challenge New England Participating Colleges

• Amherst College (MA)
  Faculty Advisor: Geoffrey Woglom
• Babson College (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: Nestor Azcona, Frederic Chartier
• Bentley University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: David Gulley, Aaron Jackson
  2012 New England Champion Team
• Boston College (MA)
  Faculty Advisor: Robert Murphy
• Boston University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: Robert King, Alisdair McKay
• Bryant University (RI)
  Faculty Advisors: Aziz Berdiev, Edinaldo Tebaldi
• Clark University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: Wayne Gray, Dessislava Slavtcheva
• Dartmouth College (NH)
  Faculty Advisors: Elisabeth Curtis, Frank Zarnowski
  2012 New England First Runner-Up Team
• Framingham State University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: Michael Enz, Francis Kemegue, Fahlino Sjuib
• Harvard College (MA)
  Faculty Advisor: Benjamin Friedman
  2012 New England Finalist Team
• Middlebury College (VT)
  Faculty Advisor: Scott Pardee
  2012 New England Finalist Team
• Northeastern University (MA)
  Faculty Advisor: Oscar Brookins
• Quinnipiac University (CT)
  Faculty Advisor: Robert Porter
• Roger Williams University (RI)
  Faculty Advisors: Maria Kula, Priniti Panday
• Salem State University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: Van Pham, Dorothy Siden
• Tufts University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: David Garman, Edward Kutsoati, Christopher McHugh
• University of New Hampshire (NH)
  Faculty Advisors: Ahmad Etebari, Neil Niman
• Western New England University (MA)
  Faculty Advisors: Ranganath Murthy, Karl Petrick
• Yale University (CT)
  Faculty Advisor: Nicholas Perna