Results of Károly Gundel Students’ Academic Society

The Students’ Academic Society, which has been operating successfully for many years, plays an important role in the faculty in nurturing the talent of students with outstanding abilities.

According to the current government decree, the aim of the academic society is to “provide high-level, high-quality professional training by developing its professional program, helping talented students with outstanding abilities, taking part in public life, educating demanding intellectuals.” (Government Decree 24/2013 (II.5.) On the excellence of national higher education)

The organisation carries out and develops its professional program in accordance with the decree, the spirit of the faculty and the traditions of the academic society. It organises courses for its members that go beyond university training, through which interested students can immerse themselves in research at the beginning of their studies. In connection with this, the members organise professional lectures and discussion evenings, where they can discuss today's exciting professional and public issues with invited speakers. The aim is to deepen knowledge, arouse interest and build commitment to research.

Thanks to this serious professional work, the members of the academic society regularly win university and state scholarships, such as the Higher Education and Science Scholarship or the New National Excellence Competition.

The members of the academic society are present every year among the most successful faculty students in domestic and international competitions, and they also achieve beautiful successes at the university level and in the National Students’ Research Society competition.

Excerpts from prestigious competitions with the participation of members of the Károly Gundel Students’ Academic Society in recent years:

Home competitions

National Case Study Competition

The Károly Gundel Students’ Academic Society was represented in 2021 by four independent student teams (as opposed to just one team in previous years) in the 22^nd annual competition organised by EVK Students’ Academic Society. In this competition, participants demonstrate their practical knowledge by working out real case studies and presenting their solution proposals. Because of the great interest, BUEB organised an in-house first round, in which three of our four teams got ahead. Unfortunately, though, none of our teams made it to the final rounds of the competition. Nevertheless, our teams gained lots of experience during the competition.

Tímár László Case Study Competition

The University of Pannonia Faculty of Business and Economics organised the 20^th Tímár László Case Study Solving Competition in 2021. Our Students’ Academic Society was represented by a team of four students: Helga Schilling, Dorottya Szabó, Gergő Galambos, and Dániel Simon-Fiala. The team prepared for solving a case study, as suggested by the name of the competition itself. However, due to some problems, the task ended up being a business simulation situation, where competitors had to make hourly decisions about their business’s expenses. Our team (out of the 12 teams total) did not make it to the final rounds, but we are proud of their achievements, especially in light of the sudden change in the program.

Ecosim simulation competitions

Our Students’ Academic Society members participated this year again in the online business simulation competitions organised by Ecosim. This time, these simulations were rather “games”. Students took part individually both in the #makehistory game and in the revised K&H competition. In the K&H competition, institutions of higher education competed against each other by naming the University, and the University with the highest number of participating students won. The three final prizes of the #makehistory career game were drawn from among the best competitors, and our student Bence Andrássy won a prize.

International competitions

CBS International Case Competition

Four students of our Students’ Academic Society – Dóra Kiss, Dorottya Szabó, Gergő Galambos and Dániel Simon-Fiala – participated in a CBS international case study competition. Because of the pandemic, the competition was held online. The topics of the competition were centred around IKEA’s logistics and environmental developments. Teams had a total of 24 hours to work out their solutions to problems. Our team’s excellent plan almost made it to the final rounds among the several hundred competitors.

EuroCHRIE Challenge 2021

The EuroCHRIE international competition on hotels was held in the second semester of 2020/2021. More than 16 teams participated from several countries around the world. Two students of our Students’ Academic Society – Flóra Harangozó and Krisztina Kolozsvári – participated, and our the team also included Roland Viglási and Csenge Molnár. Their mentor teacher was Klára Karakasné Dr. Morvay. It was very interesting to experience how a hotel’s operation is influenced by its competitors’ decisions, and it was also exciting to observe the various decision-making strategies of different countries.

The Károly Gundel Students’ Academic Society not only participates in competitions, but also organises competitions itself:

BeKVIKer

The BeKVIKer is a national case study competition for high school (secondary education) students. It was organised for the third time in the 2020/21 academic year by Károly Gundel Students’ Academic Society at Budapest University of Economics and Business, Faculty of Commerce, Hospitality and Tourism. This competition is centred on economics and general knowledge, emphasising creative problem solving. It consists of three rounds: the first two are online and the final round is at Budapest University of Economics and Business. This year, because of the pandemic, the final round was organised online as well. The competition is open for students in grades 10-12, who form 3-member teams. No previous professional knowledge is necessary. This year, approximately 150 students participated, and 13 of our Students’ Academic Society members took part in organising the competition. The first round, ending on 22 November, included multiple choice questions and creative tasks. The best 20 teams made it to the second round, and they had to solve a touristic case study provided by Aquincum Hotel Budapest, between 29 November and 13 December. The 10 best teams made it to the final rounds on 22 January, 2021, where they presented their touristic case studies and solutions to another commercial case study. This was sponsored by Munch, a platform fighting food waste.

Tolcsva, the Treasure of Tokaj

“Tolcsva, the Treasure of Tokaj” was a national competition, the final of which was held in Tolcsva. The two main sponsors of the competition were Andrea Sólyom PhD, professional director, and Zsuzsanna Szili, director of the Szirmai-Walbott Castle in Tolcsva. The main organiser of the competition was the professional vice-president Hanna Miksán. The competition was open to undergraduate students in pairs, who could submit entries on three topics related to the Faculty's degree programme.

Around 24 students from all over the country entered the national competition. The semi-final of the competition was held on 26 October 2023 in the Markó Street building at BUEB FCHT. At the competition each team presented their solution to the topic, then at the results announcement, the 3 mentor juries announced the 2-2 teams that made it to the final and completed their entries with the help of mentors.

The final was held in Tolcsva, in the Szirmay-Waldbott Castle on 18 November 2023. At the final, the teams presented their final entries, followed by a gala dinner and the announcement of the results.