Millsaps Else School Wraps Up Inaugural Stock Market Challenge
Millsaps College’s Else School of Management has completed its first Stock Market Challenge, a semester-long virtual investing competition designed to give students practical experience in market analysis and portfolio management. The competition ran from Feb. 1 through April 30 and was hosted through MarketWatch, open to all Millsaps students.
Participants managed virtual portfolios with $100,000 in simulated cash, competing for prizes, scholarships, and campus recognition. The event aimed to enhance students’ research, analytical, and decision-making skills while applying classroom concepts to real-world scenarios, according to Harvey Fiser, dean of the Else School.
Fiser said the challenge was launched with support from the Millsaps Finance Club and faculty members. “We use it as a research tool and to teach students how to navigate the stock market,” he said. “They research stocks, then they buy them.”
Throughout the semester, students could trade as frequently or as little as they liked and monitored their portfolios in real time on the MarketWatch platform. The platform is integrated into several courses, including a fintech class focused on financial technology companies.
More than 60 students and faculty participated, including graduating senior and football player Blake Wiley. Wiley increased his portfolio from $100,000 to approximately $166,873 by the end of the competition. MBA student Charles Barlow also performed well, growing his portfolio by about $50,000.
Wiley reflected on his experience, stating, “I’m only up 12%, so I made $12,000 this semester. I’m fairly proud considering I lost like $80,000 in the first two weeks, but all of my stocks came back.”
Top performers earned scholarships toward Millsaps’ MBA program, with the first-place winner receiving a partial scholarship. The event’s success highlights the value of experiential learning in preparing students for careers in finance and business by providing direct exposure to market research and portfolio management.
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