Scott Gabriel Tiamson, Josh Cody Ong, Ethan Gabriel Lee, and Catherine Beatrize Salazar of the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) were given one week in September to create a mental health program that could be implemented by local government units and non-government organizations across ASEAN to deal with the rising problem of mental health. The quartet, all taking up Master of Science in Industrial Economics (MSIE), did not fail. They emerged first runner-up in the ASEAN-Australian Youth Summit Case Competition: Breakthroughs in Mental Health hosted online by ASEAN Youth Organization of Australia.
The college juniors represented Aureum (Latin for “golden”), a case competition pool operating under Forum, UA&P’s debate society founded by Scott. Aureum trains its members to solve real and complex business problems and economic issues in society by forming innovative ideas and turning them into actionable insights. Barely three months old since its formal establishment and with only five members to field, the student organization has remarkably gone to compete and place in both national and international arenas.
“Excellence is something well known to UA&P students,” Scott, who also founded Aureum with friends Josh, Ethan, Anna Maria Grio (Mater of Science in Management), and Regina Maria Padojinog (MSIE), said. “But it remains contained within the University’s four walls. I believed that participating in various competitions would be a tangible way to project this message outside UA&P.”
In August, Scott, Josh, and Ethan, together with MScM student Jose Genson II, bested 177 teams worldwide including those from Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Wharton, UC Berkeley, and Cornell by placing fourth, with an honorable mention, among the global finalists in Consult for America Case Competition. Presenting to a panel of CEOs, business executives, and strategy consultants, the Filipino team prepared an innovative solution for small businesses in Philadelphia to cope with the changes in the business landscape brought about by COVID-19.
On the same month, Scott, Josh, and Ethan retained their championship in the university division of the PitchIt Case Competition II hosted by STEM Online Academy, winning against teams from Canadian universities. The trio presented the best innovative business strategy to improve the total sales, market capitalization, and competitive strategy of electric cars within the automobile industry. They first bagged the championship in July.
“We prepare our members for the ‘real world’ by giving them the opportunity to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical endeavors outside the classroom,” said Josh, managing director of Aureum. “Through case competitions, members get to have a hands-on and realistic experience in proposing solutions to and recommendations for complex problems faced by businesses. Aureum serves as a platform for students to gain valuable experience and skills while challenging themselves to continue learning in more ways than they can imagine.”
Aureum hopes to train more students, leaders, and teams in the fields of strategic planning, entrepreneurial thinking, and data analysis while actively integrating UA&P’s key principles of clarity of thought and expression, critical and practical thinking, and a synthesis of firm principles in solving relevant problems.
Ethan, one of the founding partners, remarked, “In representing the school and in going up against competent universities in the Philippines and abroad, Aureum reminds us that we will always maintain a ‘golden’ standard of performance in being academically competitive. We will always strive to consistently exhibit excellence, showcase professionalism, and demonstrate perseverance in all our efforts to bring honor to the school.”#
Banner photo by Todd Quackenbush on Unsplash.
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