What is JDC West?
JDC West is the Olympics for business students in Western Canada. Hosted by a different school every year, 12 of the country’s top business schools are invited annually to bring a delegation of no more than 50 of their best students. Each delegation brings 13 teams competing in 10 separate academic case disciplines (Accounting, Marketing, Human Resources, etc.), as well as Debate, Athletic, and Social.
Much like the Olympics, there is a unique culture and energy that surrounds the competition. Although highly competitive, the main goal of JDC West is to create a sense of unity between schools and to cultivate an environment that makes connecting easy. Schools aim to win but are also heavily invested in each others success.
Academic – The largest component of the competition. Teams analyze business case studies and present their findings and recommendations to a panel of industry professionals. Delegates are trained to think critically and effectively communicate ideas through written and verbal mediums. Schools send 10 teams of 3 people, each focused on a different business discipline:
- Accounting
- Marketing
- Business Strategy
- Entrepreneurship
- Operations Management
- Human Resources
- Finance
- International Business
- Business Technology
- Not-for-profit
Debate – A parliamentary-style battle of rhetoric. Delegates go head-to-head with teams from other schools on the most contentious social issues of our day. Each school sends 1 team of 4.
Athletic – This rigorous tournament demands the best in athleticism and teamwork from each school. A different sport is played every year, ranging from Dodgeball, to Ringette, to Korfball (Google it.) Each school sends 1 team of 8.
Social – The general “hype” of each delegation. The social teams are the core of the remarkable JDC West culture. The winning social team maintains their spirits in the face of adversity, and works together to execute on a series of out-of-the-box challenges. Each school sends 1 team of 4.
Community Involvement – Organized by each schools’ executive team, the delegation is tasked with completing volunteer hours and raising charity dollars in the months prior to the competition.
Each school also prepares a 2-minute introduction video that is aired on the first day of the competition.
Each competing school accumulates points according to their performance and the school with the most points at the end of the weekend is awarded “School of the Year”.
