Recent UIC grad excels at 2026 Windy City Case Competition
UIC business graduate Wanlin Shen was part of the first-place winning team at the 2026 Windy City Case Competition, held in March and April.
The consulting competition for advanced-degree students from Chicago universities is organized by UIC’s Advanced Degree Consulting Student Club, the University of Chicago Gargoyle Consulting Club and the Northwestern University Advanced Degree Consulting Alliance. Participants tackle real-world business challenges in a collaborative, team-based environment to compete for the top prize.
Designed to mirror the work of professional consultants, the competition gives students a hands-on opportunity to develop structured problem-solving, strategic thinking and communication skills. Teams work through complex business cases, synthesize insights and present actionable recommendations to a panel of industry judges.
This year’s competition kicked off on March 18 and culminated in an in-person final-round presentation on April 25 at the Simpson-Querrey Auditorium at Northwestern University.
Teams of three to five students each from the three institutions participated in the competition, addressing a real-world consulting challenge provided by Articulate Labs, a Dallas, Texas-based medical device company. Participants were tasked with developing strategic, innovative solutions to a business problem in a format designed to simulate real consulting engagements.
Shen, who graduated this spring with a master’s degree in business administration, was part of a team of four that included students from the University of Chicago and Northwestern University. Her team, Chicago Campus Convergence, won first place, followed by Deep Dish Decks (2nd place) and MECE Minds (3rd place).
The final round of the 2026 competition was evaluated by judges from leading consulting and advisory firms including ZS, BCG, Guidehouse, L.E.K. Consulting and Myers and Stauffer, exposing participants to professionals working in strategy, healthcare, operations and advisory consulting.
The Advanced Degree Consulting Student Club at UIC, established this year, prepares graduate and professional students for careers in consulting. It also creates opportunities for MD, PharmD, PhD, MBA and MS students to engage with the broader consulting ecosystem through competitions, workshops, networking events and industry collaborations. As the club continues to grow, achievements such as this further position UIC as an active contributor to the broader Chicago consulting arena.
