The Tertiary Business Sense Challenge (TBSC) national semi-final is set after six universities secured victories during two days of intense quarter-final contests in Accra for the national honours.
The University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), the University of Cape Coast (UCC), the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), the Pentecost University (PU), the Ghana Communication Technology University (GCTU) and the Accra Technical University (ATU) emerged from the 12 quarter-finalists in the national competition to secure their semi-final berths.
The six business schools progressed after a series of closely contested, and in some cases, one-sided encounters that tested their knowledge of business, finance and economics across
five rounds.
The TBSC, in its eighth edition, is an annual quiz organised to test tertiary students' knowledge of business, finance and economics, while helping them to develop analytical ability, teamwork, quick thinking and practical business judgement.
The competition is supported by professional and corporate institutions, including the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana (ICAG), the Chartered Institute of Human Resource Management (CIHRM), Standard Natural Mineral Water, GLICO, Papaye, PwC and EPP Publishing, with Alhassan Yusif Trawule as quizmaster.
Day one
The UGBS was the first to secure a position at the national semi-final last Friday with a 44-26 victory over the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), extending its run to the national semi-final for the fourth consecutive year.
The contest between the two former national champions began evenly, with both sides scoring 12 points in the opening round.
The UEW briefly gained the advantage in the quantitative and applied analysis round, before the teams tied at 10 points apiece in the Graphic Business round based on the article "Cheaper Loans Face Test as Bond Yields Rise."
The UGBS snatched the victory with nine points in the riddles round.
Two-time national champions, the UCC, produced the most emphatic result of the first day, overwhelming the Academic City University (ACU) 61-21.
The UCC led 13-6 after the opening round and extended its advantage with a 16-0 victory in the quantitative and applied analysis segment.
The Graphic Business round, based on an article on building cost inflation, ended 9-6 in the UCC's favour, while the university also won the true or false round 12-9 before adding 11 points in the final riddles round.
The day's final contest produced the closest finish, with KNUST edging Valley View University (VVU) 33.5-33.
The VVU led 15-10 after the opening round but KNUST responded with an 8.5-0 victory in the quantitative and applied analysis round.
The Graphic Business round, based on an article on payroll sizes of banks in Ghana, ended 9-9, while KNUST moved ahead after winning the true or false round.
The VVU scored six points in the final riddles round but could not overturn the deficit, allowing KNUST to progress by half a point.
Day Two
The Pentecost University (PU) began the second day with a 27-21.5 victory over the Tamale Technical University (TTU).
The PU, which finished second in the South-East Zone, took the opening round 6-3 before the TTU edged the quantitative and applied analysis segment 2.5-2.
The PU regained control in the Graphic Business round, based on "Why SMEs Need to Go Digital Now".
The PU sealed the win in the riddles round, scoring three points, while the TTU failed to secure any point.
In the second contest of the day, the GCTU secured a narrow 15-14 victory over the West End University College (WEUC).
The GCTU took the opening round 4-0 before the WEUC responded in the quantitative and applied analysis segment, winning 3-0.
The teams remained level in the Graphic Business round, which focused on an article titled "MTN Ghana Pledges $1bn Investment to Drive Home Connectivity".
The GCTU restored its advantage in the true or false round.
The WEUC managed three points in the final riddles round, but the GCTU held on to secure a one-point victory.
The six-team semi-final line-up was completed by the ATU, the South-East Zone champions, after a commanding 34.5-13 victory over the Kumasi Technical University (KsTU) in the third and final contest of the day.
The ATU dominated the opening and the quantitative and applied analysis segments.
The KsTU responded by winning the Graphic Business round.
After a tie at the true or false round, the ATU finished strongly in the riddles round.
The six semi-finalists — UGBS, UCC, KNUST, PU, GCTU and ATU — will now compete for places in the national final and the ultimate TBSC bragging rights in the coming days.
