Ethics Challenge
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)
- 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 7, 2027 • virtual): Teams receive a new case and have 23 hours to prepare and submit a PowerPoint slide presentation for evaluation; judges then conduct live Q&A before selecting the national champion.
Individual Competition – How It Works
Preliminary Individual Round (mid-December 2026 to mid-January 2027): 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: Those who successfully complete the ethical decision-making online program during the Preliminary Individual Round will be invited to the National Individual Round.
National Individual Round (May 7, 2027 • 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, 2026.
Awards & Prizes
Teams:
- Local Finalists: certificate + award + $400 (CAD) per winning team member
- National Champions: featured in national press release + commemorative award + a choice of either a CFA Program Scholarship or $800 (CAD) per winning team member
Individuals:
- National Top 5: CFA Program scholarship (or equivalent value)
- National Winner: $1,500 (CAD) + commemorative award
Key Dates
Teams:
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| October 31, 2026 | Universities confirm participation in the CFA Societies Canada Ethics Challenge with the local host (local CFA Society). |
| November 30, 2026 | Registration deadline for all students and faculty advisors. |
| December 14, 2026 to January 17, 2027 | Competition kick-off with an interactive ethical decision making online program from CFA Institute in the Ethics Learning Lab. |
| January, 2027 | The host Society will distribute the Local Competition Ethics Case study to all registered competing universities (three weeks prior to Local Competition). |
| January – February 2027 | Local Competitions are held throughout the country at local Host Societies. |
| May 7, 2027 | 2027 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 which is open to both competing and all other interested students. |
Individuals:
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| November 30, 2026 | Registration deadline for all individual student participants. |
| December 14, 2026 to January 17, 2027 | Preliminary Individual Round starts with an interactive ethical decision-making online program from CFA Institute in the Ethics Learning Lab. |
| January, 2027 | Those who successfully complete the ethical decision-making online program will be invited to the National Individual Round in May. |
| May 7, 2027 | 2027 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 which is open to both competing and all other interested students. |