What Is the College Project Competition?
The College Project Competition (TCPC) is an opportunity for students to use the skills learned in the classroom on a real-world project. A scenario is released annually in December. Students form teams to develop solutions for the scenario by dividing responsibilities among themselves according to best practices and each student’s capabilities and goals. Students can meet with their Mentor—and Champion—to get advice and insight; however, the students are responsible for the creation of deliverables through each of the four gates. The gates are critical points reflecting the needed materials:
- project charter
- work breakdown structure
- management plants
- final presentation.
Who Can Participate
Michigan Tech Students
The Michigan Tech College of Business conducts recruitment efforts to field several teams for the upcoming competition season in the fall semesters around Spring registration time. If you have taken a project management course (OSM3200, OSM4300 or ENG4300), then you have the prerequisite to participate in this hands-on competition.
Outside Colleges
We are looking for schools interested in participating in Spring 2026. Please fill out this interest form, and we will email updates as they come.. If you have any questions, contact Roger Woods at rhwoods@mtu.edu.
Benefits
MTU Alumni that went through TCPC routinely cite that experience as the most impactful part of their time as an undergrad at MTU.
- Gain experience with and insight into project management skills.
- Project Management Institute student memberships ($32.00 value)
- Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) ($49.50 value)
- Practical preparation for the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)
- Semester-long mentoring from two seasoned and certified professionals from companies in West Michigan
Additionally, students often obtain internships and career jobs by networking with professionals and other participants.
Degree Integration
MTU students can participate in TCPC as a capstone option. They are required to first complete an internship; they can then use TCPC to complete their capstone via the class “Advanced Project Management.” The other options are to take two classes in a cluster like Managerial/Cost Account 1 and 2 or Introduction to Supply Management and Procurement & Supply Management. The last option would be to take two years/four semester of Enterprise, in which the student would work on a real project for real clients with other students.
Registration
Contact Roger Woods, rhwoods@mtu.edu, and convey your interest. Roger will talk with you before giving you permission to enroll in the course, OSM 4350 Advanced Project Management if you are a student of Michigan Tech.