Six Teams from UB School Of Management Vie for $1,000 in Pricewaterhousecoopers Accounting Competition

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Six teams from the University at Buffalo School of Management will contend for $1,000 in the first round of the national xTREME Accounting Campus Competition (xACT) sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to be held at 3 p.m. on Nov. 4 in the Jacobs Executive Development Center at 672 Delaware Ave.

The UB School of Management is one of only 28 schools, nationwide, chosen to participate in the accounting firm's competition, which is in its inaugural year.

In addition to the $1,000 prize, the winning team on each campus will be considered for the xACT National Finals. Five teams then will be chosen as national finalists and awarded $10,000 per team and a trip to New York City, where each team will get a chance to join with experts from PwC's Risk and Quality Group to learn about how national and international accounting and auditing positions are developed.

Each of the UB School of Management's six teams consist of five members, including two sophomores, one junior and two additional members of any level from sophomore through master's-degree level, and is coached by a faculty member from the school's accounting department.

According to competition guidelines, each team has two weeks to research an assigned accounting and assurance issue. This year, the teams have been asked to provide guidance to the queen of a fictitious country on how to avoid future accounting scandals. On Nov. 4, the UB teams will have 12 minutes each to present their results. PwC staff members will judge the competition, evaluating teams on critical and creative thinking, presentation quality and teamwork.

"It is truly an honor to be among the 28 schools chosen to participate," said Susan Hamlen, chair of the accounting department in the UB School of Management. "We are competing with other excellent schools, including Ohio State University, the University of Michigan, UCLA and Syracuse University, and I am certain that our students will represent us well."

UB School of Management graduates achieved the fourth-highest passing rate in the country on the May 2002 Business Law and Professional Responsibilities part of the CPA exam.

The University at Buffalo School of Management is ranked as one of the world's "top business schools" by The Wall Street Journal. It also has been cited by Business Week as one of the "best business schools" in America, and by Forbes for "best return on investment." For more information about the UB School of Management, visit http://www.mgt.buffalo.edu.