On January 18, undergraduate students will participate in the Science Case Competition hosted by the Science Undergraduate Society (SUS) and SCI Team, where they will research and devise solutions for a global health crisis.
Organized into teams of three to five people, the participants’ goal is to tackle the presented case from a wide variety of perspectives. They will be focusing on the ethical, social and economic implications of their solution in addition to the wide range of applicable scientific concepts.
The participants had a week to research and prepare a descriptive proposal using a multidisciplinary approach. The evening will culminate in presentations of research posters to a panel of UBC professors and graduate students, who will give feedback. The presentations will also be scored in order to rank the teams and determine a winner.
“This year, we wanted to change the way it was organized previously and make it applicable to current world news [in order to] increase the amount of students that can participate,” said Sarah Park, VP Academic of SUS, in a written statement to The Ubyssey.
In addition to honing research skills, the objectives of the event also include practicing analytical thinking, problem solving and public speaking skills. Emphasizing the importance of these soft skills, Park said she believes science students need to have communication skills “to thrive in their future careers.”
Another area the competition hopes to foster is cooperation, which is why students from all majors and specializations are encouraged to participate.