The Ghana Communication Technology University (GCTU) and Pentecost University (PU) have qualified for the semi-finals of the South-East Zone after winning their respective quarter-final contests in the eighth edition of the Graphic Business Tertiary Sense Challenge.
GCTU beat Heritage Christian University 27 points to 20, while PU overcame Valley View University (VVU) 43 points to 38.5 in the second contest of the day, completing the South-East Zone's quarter-final stage following similar contests already held in the North, Middle, and South-West zones.
Contest
Heritage Christian University, fielding an all-female team, has steadily built a reputation for innovation and ambition in the competition, with hopes of reaching the zonal semi-final and ultimately the national final.
GCTU, for its part, has upset opponents since its early editions in the contest.
Heritage gained early momentum in round one, answering two questions correctly before GCTU got its first one right.
GCTU clawed back by converting Heritage's bonus questions, ending the round at 8 points to Heritage's 6.
For round two, the most subdued of the five, tested contestants on calculations involving sales revenue and gross profit, the minimum reduction in financial impact from a cyber attack and equipment failure, and taxable value and cash inflows.
Both teams missed their first two sets of questions, and GCTU edged the round by converting one of Heritage's bonus questions, ending 1–0.
In round three, Heritage made a substitution ahead of questions drawn from a story published in the Graphic Business.
Contestants were asked to identify two major challenges facing young entrepreneurs and explain how each affects business growth, outline the benefits of collaboration between educational institutions and industry in developing young entrepreneurs, and explain how entrepreneurship contributes to Ghana's development.
Heritage dominated the round, scoring 10 out of 10 against GCTU's 8, but it was not enough to overturn GCTU's overall lead.
In round four, the true-or-false segment, GCTU made a substitution and closed the round with 6 points to Heritage's 4.
The final round featured riddles on economic principles, finance, and legal remedies in civil matters arising from transactions.
Heritage failed to score, while GCTU added 4 points to seal its passage to the semi-final.
Second contest
In the day's second contest, VVU took an early lead in round one, edging PU 11 points to 7 in a fiercely contested round in which both teams picked up bonus points where they could.
Round two opened with a question requiring contestants to calculate the maximum average inventory a board should hold to achieve its target, and the reduction required on average inventory from a given problem.
PU answered correctly while VVU missed, and PU converted the miss into a bonus, dominating the round 7 points to 5.5 and narrowing the overall gap.
Round three, based on a story by a student journalist published in the Graphic Business, asked contestants to explain two skills student entrepreneurs can develop and how each contributes to their success. Both teams tied, scoring 10 points apiece.
Round four, the true-or-false segment, focused on elements of a valid contract, including intention to create legal relations and consideration.
Both teams again tied, scoring 9 points each, with VVU making a tactical substitution heading into the final round.
The fifth and final round, on riddles, proved decisive as PU scored 10 points to VVU's 3, overturning VVU's early lead to seal PU's place in the semi-final.
VVU had led from the first round but surrendered top spot in the closing stage, finishing with 38.5 points to PU's 43.
Background
The eighth edition of the Tertiary Business Sense Challenge (TBSC) was launched by the Graphic Communications Group Ltd (GCGL) in June this year to equip university students with practical business knowledge, critical thinking, and leadership skills, while strengthening links between academia and industry.
The zonal competition, running from June to August 2026, brought together 17 public and private tertiary institutions across three zonal legs ahead of the national finals.
The South-East Zone comprises Academic City University (ACity), Accra Technical University (ATU), GCTU, Heritage Christian University (HCU), PU, the University of Ghana (UG), VVU, and West End University (WEU), with Alhassan Yusif Trawule serving as Quizmaster.
