Tepper School Undergraduates Win Competition at International Marketing Conference

Carnegie Mellon University's Tepper School of Business undergraduate chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA) competed at the annual International Collegiate Conference (ICC) in New Orleans. Sammi Yang and Grace Yu, both juniors pursuing a degree in Business Administration at the Tepper School, earned first place in the Marketing Strategy Competition.

The competition challenged participants to develop a marketing strategy on the spot. Teams receive a one-page brief describing a marketing challenge just 30 minutes before their presentations. Without using visual aids, they presented their strategic solutions orally within a seven-minute timeframe, followed by a three-minute question-and-answer session with the judges. The judges evaluated teams based on creativity, application of marketing knowledge, and communication skills.

“A major learning opportunity from this experience was being able to see how we could apply the knowledge from the Tepper courses we’re taking to a real-life scenario,” Yu said. “Sammi and I are both currently taking Business Presentations and we could transfer a lot of the skills we have been practicing — like building a story and effectively answering questions — to this competition.”

Beyond Yang and Yu’s victory, the Carnegie Mellon chapter was recognized for its excellence in professional development, fundraising, and membership growth at the conference. These accolades affirmed the chapter's role as a leader in the AMA community.

“Before attending ICC, Carnegie Mellon AMA was the only AMA I’ve ever known,” Yang said. Meeting AMA students from all over the world, competing against peers from other schools, and hearing other Top 25 chapters share how they provide value to their members really opened my eyes to the fact that beyond what we do in the Tepper and CMU community, we are also part of something larger.”

The achievements of the Tepper School AMA chapter highlight the collective effort of its members who strive to excel in marketing education and practice.