Case Competition — UCLA Center for Healthcare Management

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE INFORMATION, for answers to frequently asked questions, to submit your case deliverables, AND to see VIDEOS AND PHOTOS FROM PAST COMPETITIONS

ABOUT

The UCLA Center for Healthcare Management Case Competition provides healthcare management graduate students an opportunity to put what they have learned into practice. Student teams (up to four members) from around the world are challenged to provide solutions and recommendations to a real-time, real-world management challenge faced by a Southern California healthcare system. Teams have 88 hours in November to complete their analyses and the top eight teams visit Los Angeles to present their ideas to healthcare leaders in January. This format enables the exchange and dissemination of ideas, as well as professional networking.

FIRST PLACE: $12,000
SECOND PLACE: $8,000
THIRD PLACE: $4,000
FOURTH PLACE: $2,000

Tickets to the final presentations will be available in January.

PREMIER SPONSOR:

UCLA Health is the premier sponsor of the case competition. UCLA Health will provide the challenge to be analyzed and executive judges for the competition itself.

REGISTRATION

Registration will close on Monday, November 9, 2026. There is a $100 registration fee and teams are responsible for travel costs if they advance to the semi-finals in Los Angeles. You will not receive a separate confirmation email but your registration information will be automatically emailed to you.

TIMELINE

Case release: Thursday, November 12 @ 5:00PM PST
Case submissions due: Monday, November 16 @ 9:00AM PST
Finalists notification: no later than December 11, 2026
Semi-final and Final presentations: Friday, January 29, 2027. If you would like to attend the Final Presentations as a guest, tickets will be available later in the year.

RULES AND REGULATIONS

1.    Teams may have 3-4 members
2.    All team members must be active students in November when the case is released
3.    Teams must come from programs with national accreditation
4.    There is no limit on how many teams per school/program can register
5. All team members must attend the same college or university
6.    Team members may not have an employment connection to the sponsoring health system

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Click here for more information about sponsorship options.

Contact

Laura Erskine
Director
UCLA Center for Healthcare Management
Email: lerskine@ucla.edu

2026 COMPETITION

Out of the 92 teams from across the country that participated in the 2026 UCLA Center for Healthcare Management, these were the top four teams. Click on the image to watch a video of their final presentation.

First Place - Servant Leaders in Innovation (Xavier University)

Second Place - SEEA Consulting (University of Minnesota)

Third Place - MEM Consulting (Johns Hopkins University)

Fourth Place - Dream Team (CSU Long Beach)

2025 COMPETITION

Out of the 58 teams from across the country that participated in the 2025 UCLA Center for Healthcare Management, these were the top four teams.

First Place - Synergy Solutions (Ohio State University)

Second Place - ValiCare Consultants (University of Minnesota)

Third Place - Healing Valley Connections (Army-Baylor University)

Fourth Place - Vital Visionaries (Columbia University)

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2023 COMPETITION

Out of the 52 teams from across the country that participated in the 2023 UCLA Center for Healthcare Management, these were the top four teams. Click on the image to watch a video of their final presentation.

First Place - Equity Advocates (University of Michigan)

Second Place - CARE Consulting (University of Michigan)

Third Place - Apollo Advisors (University of Minnesota)

Fourth Place - SoCal Solutions (University of Southern California)

2022 COMPETITION

Out of the 36 teams from across the country that participated in the 2022 UCLA Center for Healthcare Management, these were the top four teams. Click on the image to watch a video of their final presentation.

1st Place: Brain Stormers, Columbia University

2nd Place: Allied Consulting Partners, University of Southern California

3rd Place: Root Cause Health Solutions, Yale University

4th Place: Symbiotic Solutions, University of South Carolina

2021 COMPETITION - HELD VIRTUALLY

Out of the 57 teams from around the world that participated in the 2021 UCLA Center for Healthcare Management, these were the top four teams. Click on the image to watch a video of their final presentation.

1st Place: Synergy Solutions, UCLA

2nd Place: Health Communications Consulting, USC

3rd Place: Prime Consultants, University of Minnesota

4th Place: Team Verdure, Army-Baylor

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: Will there be prizes?
A: The total prize money to be awarded is $26,000.

Q: What are the required deliverables?
A: Each team is required to submit an executive summary (2-3 pages inclusive of graphics and tables) and PowerPoint presentation.

Q: Is there a limit to the number of slides for the presentation?
A: There is no specified slide limit. However, the presentation should take no more than 15 minutes, exclusive of judges’ questions (an additional 10 minutes). Teams may reference appendix slides in the presentation.

Q: How many team members can we have?
Teams can have up to 4 members. Members can be added up until the team completes the team name registration after the case is released.

Q: Who is allowed to participate?
Team members must be graduate students (masters, executive masters, doctoral). Undergraduates and faculty members are not permitted to participate. All team members must attend the same institution but are not required to be from the same program. At least one student must not be graduating in the current academic year. Any student team members who work (or have worked) at UCLA, even in an unpaid role, are not permitted to participate.

Q: What is the role of the faculty advisor?
The faculty advisor should know about student participation and allow this. The faculty advisor may provide guidance to the team ahead of the case release but may not assist the teams in their analyses.

Q: Can student teams receive any help with analyses?
A: Teams may not contact any employees of UCLA Health or its affiliates. In addition, participants may not consult with other healthcare professionals nor with professors.

Q: Is there a fee to register?
A: No. Registration and participation are free. Travel expenses to Los Angeles are not covered by the Center for Healthcare Management

Q: What if student teams have questions about the case?
A: The UCLA Center for Healthcare Management will hold a brief phone conference the morning after the case is released to answer any clarifying questions from participants. Questions should be emailed in advance of the call.

Q: Are teams allowed to modify their slide deck before the on-site presentation?
A: Teams are permitted to make slight modifications to their presentations but are not permitted to change the recommendations.

Q: May program directors and faculty attend the final presentations?
A: Faculty advisors may attend the first round presentation for their team only. Team members and faculty advisors may attend other presentations once they have been eliminated. Each school must clear with the UCLA Center for Healthcare Management in advance any non-team members who wish to attend the presentations.

Q: Will UCLA students have an advantage?
A: No. Team deliverables will not include student names or school names. Team deliverables will be sent directly to a Box.com folder that only the judges can access. No judges will come from the UCLA Center for Healthcare Management, the Fielding School of Public Health, or the Anderson School of Management.

Contact

Laura Erskine
Director
UCLA Center for Healthcare Management
Email: lerskine@ucla.edu