Case Competition

It is designed to highlight the excellence of Canadian public administration programs and students, and to provide a valuable learning experience for students. Canadian universities that have programs in public administration may compete.

Past Competitions and Results

Honor Roll

Call for participation | CAPPA National Public Administration Student Case Competition 2027

The Canadian Association of Programs in Public Administration (CAPPA) is pleased to announce the 2027 round of the CAPPA National Public Administration Case Study Competition for CAPPA graduate students.

This year’s competition is, once again, co-organized by Professor Eugene Lang(opens in new tab) and Professor Ian Roberge(opens in new tab).

Key Dates

Case study release: Wednesday, February 10, 2027
Opening reception and team meet up with competition organizers: Saturday, February 13, 2027
Competition day: Saturday, February 20, 2027

The entire event will take place online.

What's New This Year

The competition organizers are finalizing a responsible AI-use policy that will be in effect for this year’s event. The policy will be made available to participating teams this fall.
All future communications about the competition will come from the email address: cappacasecomp@gmail.com(opens in new tab). Please ensure that the address is not blocked by your institutional settings and check your junk/spam folder as needed. The mail account will be monitored daily, so you can always reach the organizers if you are not receiving the updates.

How to Register

Only 14 spots are available for all member schools and programs, allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. We cordially invite member schools and programs to express their interest in participating. Registration is now open and will remain so until all available spots have been filled.

Please fill out this form to register: Call for Participation 2027(

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Should you have any questions, please contact the organizers at cappacasecomp@gmail.com(opens in new tab) or kathy.mcnutt@uregina.ca(opens in new tab). We will gladly answer any questions you may have.

Kathy McNutt, PhD
Présidente, ACPAP

The National Annual Public Administration Student Case Competition is organized annually by CAPPA with annual and committed support by the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC), Canada School of Public Service (CSPS), and the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP). Member schools of CAPPA are invited to compete in the competition with the aim of highlighting the excellence of Canadian public administration and public policy programs and their students. Each year, the competition brings together the best and brightest students.

2015 Case Competition Participants are organized into teams of four presenters and one alternate which are presented with a "real world" and current public administration case, with accompanying background material. They work together to develop the best solution to the case study questions and problem over a 10-day period. There is one round of competition held the third Saturday in February. Individual schools usually put together their teams in the fall term, either by direct invitation of the coaches or through a run-off competition. For more information on the format of the competition, please consult the rules and procedures.

The judging panel is selected from senior officials, many of whom have some attachment or familiarity with the case study. The competition has attracted judges from federal, provincial/territorial, municipal, private sector and nonprofit organizations. The competition has been very fortunate to have been able to attract very influential and talented officials who wish to support the experience of students entering what has become one of CAPPA's most important events in the year. The competition is also very well supported by faculty coaches and mentors who give generously of their time and experience, most often in ways not replicated in classroom experience.

Teams then develop 30-minute presentations that are made to a panel of judges. An assessment rubric will be provided before work begins, and time limits are strictly enforced.

Quality of the presentations is always high. A list of winners is available on our Honour Roll page.

Past Cases and the Results of past Competitions

Call for participation | CAPPA National Public Administration Student Case Competition 2027

The Canadian Association of Programs in Public Administration (CAPPA) is pleased to announce the 2027 round of the CAPPA National Public Administration Case Study Competition for CAPPA graduate students. This year’s competition is, once again, co-organized by Professor Eugene Lang…