Computer Information Systems Project and Case Competition

8th Annual CIS Case Competition: April 12-14, 2019

Students studying information systems and technology, management information systems, software engineering, and computer science are invited to present projects and participate in a live case analysis during the annual competition at Ball State.

Students demonstrate their command of information systems, gain valuable feedback from industry experts, and network with peers and professionals at the three-day event.

Participation in the competition is free of charge for participating students and supervisors. Ball State provides most meals and snacks, but participants are responsible for travel and hotel accommodations.

Questions?

Contact the Miller College Dean's Office at millerdean@bsu.edu

2018 Report

Click here to view the 2018 CIS Case Competition Report

Program Overview

Since 2012, Ball State has hosted the competition, which averages about a dozen teams (limit of 3 teams per school), each consisting of a maximum of six undergraduate students and a team coach or faculty advisor.

Prior to the competition, students submit a 3-page document (PDF, approximately 1,500 words) about their project to Dr. Sushil Sharma, associate dean of the Miller College of Business.

During the competition, students first showcase projects in the form of a demonstration, then present projects to a panel of judges. The second part of the competition is a case analysis, during which students are given a case, then asked to present a solution to a panel of judges.

Awards are presented to the top three overall projects across several categories.

Eligibility

Participation is open to any student in information systems or a related major from any college who meets the following criteria and follow the below guidelines:

entrants must be enrolled as undergraduate students at the time the project was completed
individuals or teams (of no more than six students; limit of 3 teams per school) can submit a project
a student(s) may submit only one entry, which must be original work completed by the student(s
the project must be a real-world endeavor the student(s) completed for a client, including any individual, business, not-for-profit, club, association, or other organization.
each submission must be 85 percent complete by the time of the presentation so that students will be able to answer judges’ questions.

Paper Guidelines

Project papers may address any area of information systems and should adhere to the following guidelines. Participants will receive valuable feedback about their paper from the experienced practitioners serving as judges.

do not exceed three pages or 1,500 words, which includes the paper, works cited, and appendix (if applicable).
include the following headings: Abstract, Problem Definition, Methodology, and Solution.
submit original work of entrant(s)
write in English, using standard APA or MLA formatting guidelines
the style style and technical detail should be presented so that both a non-technical business executive and a technician can understand and appreciate the content. (For example, a business executive would be interested in understanding what problem was addressed and how it could be solved, and a technician would likely want to know the means to implement a solution.
clearly identify the community partner and demonstrate the impact on the client, which may be defined widely by geographic, interest, research, generational, religious, national, social, socio-economic, academic, etc.