Ethics Challenge

CFA Societies Canada Ethics Challenge

Real-world ethics. Career-ready skills. A head start on your CFA® Program journey.

The CFA Societies Canada Ethics Challenge advances the profession’s highest standards of ethics, education, and professional excellence by preparing students to navigate real ethical dilemmas they’ll face in investment management while introducing concepts that appear in the CFA Program.

What You’ll Gain

  • Apply the CFA Institute Code of Ethics & Standards of Professional Conduct to practical scenarios

  • Strengthen judgment, integrity, communication, and teamwork

  • Augment classroom learning with case-based practice and mentoring

  • Receive hands-on mentoring

  • Network with professionals and peers to make inroads within the industry

Two Ways to Participate

  • Team Competition: Local case competition hosted by CFA Societies across Canada → National Round (virtual)

  • (NEW) Individual Competition: Online Preliminary Individual Round → National Individual Round (virtual)

Team Competition - How It Works

Local Round: Hosted by local CFA Societies in BC, Alberta, Prairies (SK & MB), Ontario, Québec, and Atlantic Canada. A faculty advisor assembles and guides a team of 3-5 students. Teams have ~3 weeks to work on the case, deliver a 10-minute presentation and a 10-minute Q&A to judges. One local winner from each region advances to the National Round.

National Round (May 1, 2026 • virtual): Teams receive a new case and have 23 hours to prepare and submit a recorded presentation; judges then conduct live Q&A before selecting the national champion.

2026 Official Rules (Team Competition)

Participation Agreement

Individual Competition - How It Works

Preliminary Individual Round (mid-December 2025 to mid-January 2026): Complete the interactive, self-study Ethical Decision-Making Program in the CFA Institute Ethics Learning Lab (includes quizzes, polls, discussion prompts, reflections, and a leaderboard).

Advancement: The top 25 scorers are invited to the National Individual Round.

National Individual Round (May 1, 2026 • virtual): Case-based and individual questions test knowledge and comprehension of the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct; the winner is announced at the conclusion.

Register by November 30, 2025.

2026 Official Rules (Individual Competition)

Participation Agreement

REGISTER HERE

Awards & Prizes

Teams

  • Local Finalists: certificate + award + $400 (CAD) per winning team member

  • National Champions: featured in national press release + commemorative award + $800 (CAD) per winning team member

Individuals

  • Top 25: electronic certificate + invitation to National Individual Round

  • National Top 5: CFA Program scholarship (or equivalent value)

  • National Winner: $1,500 (CAD) + commemorative award

Key Dates

Teams

Oct 31

Universities confirm participation with local host (local CFA Society).

Nov 30

Registration deadline for all students and faculty advisors.

Mid-Dec
to
Mid-Jan
Competition kick-off with an interactive ethical decision-making online program from CFA Institute in the Ethics Learning Lab.
Jan Each local host Society will distribute the Local Competition Ethics Case study to all registered competing universities (three weeks prior to Local Competition).
Jan - Feb Local Competitions are held throughout the country at local Host Societies.
May 1

2026 CFA Societies Canada Ethics Challenge – National Round held virtually where finalists from across Canada compete for the national title.

The National Round will also include an individual student competition and an informational interactive event which is open to both competing and all other interested students.

Individuals

Nov 30

Registration deadline for all individual student participants.

Register here: https://cvent.me/LqNg3O

Nov 30 Registration deadline for all students and faculty advisors.
Mid-Dec to Mid-Jan Preliminary Individual Round starts with an interactive ethical decision-making online program from CFA Institute in the Ethics Learning Lab.
Jan The top 25 scorers from the ethical decision-making online program will be invited to the National Individual Round in May.
May 1

2026 CFA Societies Canada Ethics Challenge – National Individual Round held virtually where invitees from the Preliminary Individual Round from across Canada compete for the national individual title.

The National Individual Round will also include a parallel team-based student competition and an informational interactive event which is open to both competing and all other interested students.

Past Winners

2025: University of Regina - ninth annual champion (EN/FR press releases)

2024: HEC Montréal - eighth annual champion (EN/FR)

2023: University of Saskatchewan - seventh annual champion (EN/FR)