Through the first annual Tufts Investment Competition, Wall Street-savvy Jumbos have a chance to win big bucks.
"My high school had run a similar competition with great success, so I decided it might be something Tufts students would enjoy," said senior Dave Steen, president of the Economics Society, which is co-sponsoring the competition along with the newly formed Tufts Investment Club.
"It's a great way for people to learn about investing - it forces them to research companies and learn what makes them tick," Steen said.
In the contest - which began on Mar. 16 - students "sign up through the website virtualstockexchange.com and set up a fake account for themselves," Steen said. "They then pay the entry fee [$5] and are given a password to let them into [the competition]."
As per the contest's rules, the 50 or so students competing "can trade any stock or mutual fund (only funds with five letters and ending with an X) on the NYSE, AMEX, or the Nasdaq."
On Apr. 29, entrants will find out whether their $5 investment paid off. "The three [participants] with the highest percent return will receive a cash prize equal to 50 percent for first place, 30 percent for second place, and 20 percent for third place of whatever we collect," Steen said.
The Investment Club, which currently boasts a membership of over 75 students, sees the competition as a way to further its stated mission of helping Tufts students "learn successful, practical strategies for investing in stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, real estate and other financial instruments."
Since its inception earlier in 2005, the club has held meetings, as well as a March "Basics of Investing" panel featuring Economics Lecturer Chris McHugh that served as an educational precursor to the competition.
The club also hopes to eventually establish its own mutual fund, which will be run with the input of club members - hopefully, those whose wallets did well in the Investment Competition.
This Thursday's installment of "Dollars and Sense" will explore the comparative financial benefits and detriments of investing in the stock market and using credit cards.
