Preparing today’s students for tomorrow’s national fiscal challenge.

Helping to train leaders since 2013

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Why participate in the Fiscal Challenge?

To be a responsible citizen you don’t need to be a professional economist, but you do need to know the basics of how the economy operates.

Sound fiscal policy can be an engine of economic growth for decades to come. These policies will impact YOU more than today’s politicians. So, don’t you think you should have a say in how our tax dollars are allocated?

Learning

Free Learning

Equivalent to a 400-level economics course. Any undergraduate student can participate.

networking

Networking

Meet and debate with students, advisors, and fiscal policy experts from around the country.

Team building

Teambuilding

Recruit classmates with a variety of skills such as statistical analysis, drafting public policy, and public speaking.

Resume building

Resume building

Your resume is upscaled with a unique and extraordinary activity.

What is the Fiscal Challenge?

FiscalL-Challenge-how-to-participate

This is your chance to shape our nation’s fiscal priorities.

How much should we tax? Where should we spend? Your goal is to stabilize the federal debt over the next 30 years.

We’re looking for creative, forward-looking proposals backed by solid data analysis and economic reasoning.

See More Details

Over the Years

Established In

Students attended

Universities have participated

“The Fiscal Challenge is the ideal way for students to truly understand the various trade-offs that go into policy making – not just criticizing some options, but making affirmative choices regarding how they would solve the fiscal problem.”

– William G. Gale

“I would say that knowing the caliber of these judges pushed us to know our stuff better. In that sense it was an even greater learning experience.”

– Woo Sheng Ong, UNC Chapel Hill, 2014-2015 College Fiscal Challenge

“The Fiscal Challenge was a tremendous learning experience for our students. The competition poses a crucial question: what policy options are available to stabilize the nation’s long term fiscal outlook? In addressing the question, students learn about the Federal Government’s budget and evaluate the tradeoffs between raising tax revenues and cutting government programs. There are no easy answers available, but with effort and application, students can together a well-considered proposal for fiscal stability. In doing so, regardless of the outcome of the competition, student participants in the Fiscal Challenge come out as winners.”

– Prof. Sauer, Advisor to the 2014/2015 College Fiscal Challenge National Champion Team from Clemson

How to participate?

 

  • There are no registration fees. All necessary data & tools are publicly accessible!
  • Form a team of 2 – 6 students from your university, register on our website, and start your research! Registration is open and rolling! 
  • First-round proposals are due March 8, 2024.
  • The top six (6) teams will be invited to Washington, D.C. to present and defend their proposal to respected policy analysts from top think tanks and government organizations.
  • We cover hotel and assist with travel expenses.
  • Sign up ASAP to access useful materials. 

Finals will be held in April 2024 in Washington D.C. 

Learn More

First-round submissions are due Friday, March 8th, 2024.

Students create and submit a 20-minute video presentation for round one. You should include slides and audio accompaniment without showing yourself on camera.

For the purpose of fair judging, you should not include any identification of team members, advisors, or school affiliations such as school colors, emblems, logos, etc.

Upload your presentation as an unlisted video on YouTube and email the link with your slide deck to [email protected]

We anticipate first-round results to be announced via email and social media by Tuesday, March 12th.

FAQs

Who competes in the Fiscal Challenge?

Competitors are inquisitive students who want to learn more about the fiscal challenge that the U.S. is currently facing and offer their solutions. Students hail from universities across the U.S. and from a diversity of majors including economics, public policy, political science, mathematics, statistics, business, and computer science. All undergraduate students are eligible to participate.

Why should I compete?

Students have reported that the Fiscal Challenge is a once in a lifetime experience. You learn just as much, if not more, than an upper level economics course, while having fun and making a difference. For the finalists, a trip to Washington D.C., and meeting top thinkers in the policy field is a thrill. Regardless of whether your team makes it to the finals, your resume will thank you for participating.

What’s in a good proposal?

There is no secret formula. With that being said, a good proposal will have sound economic policy suggestions that fall in line with the judging rubric. Beyond that, a good proposal will also define the current budget landscape and identify the potential challenges to their policy suggestions. Make an argument and back it up with data. See Judging Rubric

Where do we start?

Once your team is registered, you will receive access to a shared drive of resources and past presentations. We’ll send you regular updates on the competition and current fiscal policy news and releases. We also suggest visiting the CBO website and reviewing the CBO’s budget and economic outlook.

Is there a competition at the high school level?

We hosted a high school fiscal challenge in 2016. We would be glad to partner with any educators interested in hosting a fiscal policy related event. If you are interested, please contact us at [email protected].