Competitions

ARGUS University Challenge 2026

This unique challenge allows students to participate in a powerful and compelling competition to enhance their knowledge of ARGUS Enterprise to aspiring real estate professionals. The competition includes simulating a real-life investment analysis of a commercial real estate property by modeling the assumptions provided in ARGUS Enterprise and creating a paper describing the outcome of the analysis. We have invited an elite group of highly ranked universities to participate in the

Challenge. The rules of engagement are outlined below. Good luck!

Rules of Engagement

Each university may enter multiple teams of 3 – 5 members per team.
Each team member must be currently enrolled at their university.
Team member names and e-mail addresses will be submitted to the ARGUS University Challenge site by Thursday, February 26, 2026.
If submitting more than one team from a university, you must indicate a team name next to the university name on the form. Final team members may not change after this date.

Each team must have a chosen faculty member of the university functioning as the advisor. The role of the faculty member is to confirm each team member's current enrollment and offer guidance before the assignment's distribution. Please note that all work for the Challenge must be completed by team members.

Faculty, students, alumni, industry professionals and/or anyone outside the core team is not allowed to assist with the case.

The challenge will be available on the University Challenge website by March 06, 2026. The assignment includes preparing a model using ARGUS Enterprise in addition to submitting a paper explaining the results of the analysis. An ARGUS Enterprise 90-day academic license will be emailed to each participant to be used during the Challenge.

Teams are to submit their cases by emailing them to challenge@argussoftware.com. They will need to submit the ARGUS file (s) and the paper by Friday, April 17, 2026.

Students will compete for scholarship awards totaling $25,000.

1st prize winner receives $15,000
2nd prize winner receives $6,000
3rd prize winner receives $3,000
Honorable mention winner receives $1000

A panel of judges from the academic community and industry will participate in reviewing the case studies and nominating the winners. Winners will be announced May 20, 2026.

Announcement of the winners of this competition will be announced and published on ARGUS Software’s website in addition to their newsletter. Winners’ submissions will also be posted on the University Challenge website. Participants’ names, pictures, and school logos may also be published on the website.

If you have questions pertaining to this Challenge, please contact an ARGUS representative at challenge@argussoftware.com or log onto the ARGUS Community @ ARGUSSoftware.com/Support.

In a city grappling with office vacancies, aging infrastructure, housing shortages, and climate resilience imperatives, adaptive reuse offers a powerful path to renewal. The University Challenge competition places student teams in the role of real developers, giving them a real site in New York City. Student teams will design an adaptive reuse vision that weaves together community needs, financial feasibility, urban infrastructure, sustainability, and policy constraints.

Teams will propose compelling adaptive reuse strategies - whether converting an office tower, reimagining industrial buildings, transforming civic or institutional assets, or layering new uses - and ground their designs in real site conditions, market dynamics, and public policy levers.

The goal is to deliver not just a bold vision, but one that could feasibly move forward in today’s regulatory, financial, and social climate in NYC.

By focusing on adaptive reuse, students engage with one of the most urgent issues in New York’s real estate landscape: how to revitalize what already exists rather than always building new structures.

Student teams from top NYC universities are given a real development site and tasked with creating a comprehensive proposal that integrates market and financial analysis, site and architectural design, entitlement and community engagement strategies, sustainability and innovation, and a practical execution plan. Proposals are then presented to a panel of senior real estate professionals acting as a mock investment committee, with the winning team announced at a high-profile NAIOP NYC Metro event.

Grand Prize

● $7,500 to the winning team

Runner Up Prize

● $2,500 to the runner-up team

All Participants

● Each teammate receives a complimentary NAIOP membership*

● Each teammate will be assigned a career mentor from the NYC Metro chapter

February 22, 2026

Sign-up participation deadline

● February 22, 2026: Due diligence package distribution

● March 27, 2026: Work submission deadline for review

● April 2026: Final presentation event (venue TBA)

STAY TUNED

TEAM FINDER FORM

Boston University School of Hospitality Administration – Hospitality Real Estate Competition

STAY TUNED

TEAM FINDER FORM

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