The Institute ran the Chartered Accountants Student Challenge earlier this year. Students were invited to collaborate to solve a real business problem for a cause. 
 
The challenges were set by Chartered Accountants, who defined scenarios and questions that reflected the business issues of three not-for-profit organisations, Medicins San Frontieres, Oxfam Australia and The Australian Conservation Foundation. 
 
The rationale was to create an opportunity for students to “make a difference” using the knowledge they have gained at university and, to provide them with a channel for “recognition and fame” as well as prizes, and finally, to give them the experience of being a Chartered Accountant. 
 
The winners from each of the three challenges were given the opportunity to present their ideas to the individual NFP’s Board of Directors and receive a fully funded trip to see the organisation’s projects in action!  
 
Promotion for the challenges was mainly electronic and viral with some help at university lecture presentations to let students know the challenges were up and running. 
 
Two South Australian students, Olga Ryabova and Yura Verbitskiy, otherwise known as VR Partners, put in a very innovative proposal for the Medicins Sans Frontieres Challenge and won themselves a Mac laptop each.  
 
If you would like to know more about their project, or to see the calibre of work that Olga, Yura and other students around Australia submitted for the three challenges, go to http://www.figureditoutyet.com.au/profile/416