Developing employability. Inspiring enterprise.

UBC Global Masters Postgraduate Challenge

Helping postgraduates achieve their personal best career aspirations

UBC Worldwide Undergraduate Challenge

The world’s leading event for employability and enterprise skills

Welcome to the UBC

ENTRIES NOW OPEN FOR 2025-26

Helping universities prepare students for career success

The Universities Business Challenge is the world’s leading online simulation-based inter-university competition designed to develop Undergraduate and Postgraduate employability and enterprise skills. Trusted and supported by leading universities and graduate employers over 46,000 students have benefitted from taking part since 1998.

UBC has partnered with universities for over 25 years to help students develop the employability skills employers are looking for with world-leading team-based events: UBC Undergraduate Challenge and UBC Global Masters Postgraduate Challenge

Inter-university business competitions designed to develop employability, inspire enterprise

UBC – fast-track employability skills development

The Universities Business Challenge is all about employability skills development. At their core, employability skills reflect a person’s openness to adapt and innovate. In an era where technological advancements and market dynamics evolve rapidly, the ability to acquire and apply new competencies is invaluable.

One of the most effective ways of developing and enhancing employability skills is to embrace a mindset that’s focused on continuous learning and building up new skills and strengths by participating in events like the UBC.

UBC Undergraduate info

UBC Global Masters info

1: UBC develops key skills

With the new emphasis on a ‘hybrid’ workplace, the UBC develops the key outcomes employers are looking for: remote and face-to-face collaboration between team members, the ability to make decisions by consensus and to present ideas in a persuasive way online, the ability to use a range of online tools.

2: Trusted experiential learning

We provide trusted experiential learning through a range of engaging business simulations developed by the Learning Dynamics authoring team and delivered and facilitated via The Simulation Space online platform.

3: Who can take part?

The UBC is an annual inter-university competition open to all Undergraduate and Postgraduate students from any faculty, run in two separate competitions for teams of up to 5 students. The Undergraduate Challenge is run over 3 rounds starting in October. The Postgraduate Global Masters competition is run over 3 rounds starting in January.

4: Energising and engaging content

Teams will be running a series of simulated companies with carefully designed energising content and exercises not only to make maximum profits, build market share and satisfy customers but aligned to UN Sustainable Development Goals: 12. Responsible Consumption and Production; 14. Life below water and 9. Industry Innovation & Infrastructure.

5: Fast-track student success

Semi-Finals and Grand Finals: a rich experience with simulations, team work on creative exercises, team video presentations, plus inspiring guest speakers and practical tools such as strengths profiling these events are facilitated by the LD team supported by expert speakers.

6: Firepower to land an Internship

The UBC Undergraduate and Postgraduate Challenges give your students a unique employability experience: ‘My UBC experience gave me the firepower to land an internship with a leading firm of accountants’ – University of Liverpool team member

7: Certificates of Participation

Team Members who compete in the UBC can download a personalised certificate of participation to include in their personal academic profile, CV or resume. Personalised certificates are awarded for each round completed.

8: Make sure your university is registered

Entries for both challenges are open from April each year so make sure your university is entered.

Craig Reoch

Careers Adviser – School of Business, University of Dundee

‘The University of Dundee are delighted to engage with the UBC yearly in an ongoing relationship which sees our student teams flourish.

The Challenge offers a unique opportunity for students to practically apply entrepreneurial and employability skills beyond the classroom.”

Each group is given the chance to advance their teamworking, communication, analytical and leadership skills, all vital components of graduate job applications.

Not only this, but new friendships and connections are forged which we see grow in real time’.

Mohammad Idrus

Southampton University Business School – winning team leader.

‘Participating in the UBC competition has been incredible’.

The UBC Undergraduate Challenge has provided our team with invaluable experiences that we will take to heart for our future careers. Thank you for the work and opportunity that you have provided us with, it has truly been an honour.’

World-Class Online Simulations

We provide trusted experiential learning through a range of engaging business simulations developed by the Learning Dynamics authoring team and delivered via The Simulation Space online platform which runs on all devices.

Find out more

Certificates of Participation

Team members who compete in the UBC can download a personalised certificate of participation to include in their personal profile, CV or resume. Personalised certificates are awarded for each round completed.