• University and business school students are invited to submit entries by the 16 February 2022 deadline.

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) and Hines, the international real estate firm, have launched the 2022 ULI Hines Student Competition – Europe with a call for entries. This third annual team challenge for universities and business schools across Europe will test students’ skills in applying their knowledge of all aspects of real estate and land-use in a practical and challenging exercise. Applications are now open, and the deadline for submissions is 16 February 2022.

To qualify, students are invited to form multidisciplinary teams of four that demonstrate real diversity, before engaging in a challenging exercise in responsible land use that tests their understanding of the core components of real estate finance and investment, planning and development, as well as the social and environmental issues that impact decisions around land-use and sustainable development.

The application process requires each team to submit materials including a completed pre-qualification questionnaire, details about each team member, a brief description of how diversity was achieved in the team, and a short video on a favourite urban development or place, which are submitted via the ULI website.

Submissions will be reviewed by ULI and Hines, with a maximum of eight teams selected for the final stage, which is due to take place in a hybrid format on 24 May 2022. The winning team will then be selected by a jury of senior industry professionals.

Each member of the winning team will receive:

• a fast-track to the Hines internship programme;
• a guided tour of a live development project and participation in project meetings in Hines’ European offices (as travel restrictions allow);
• a one-year ULI membership – providing access to research content, events, webinars, education and mentorship programmes, knowledge sharing and connections with a multidisciplinary global network of real estate and land use professionals; and,
• complementary access to bespoke in-person opportunities within the ULI programmes (depending on location and interest).

Lars Huber, CEO of Hines Europe, said: “We’re delighted to open entries for the third ULI Hines Student Competition – Europe. Our aim is to reach a diverse array of burgeoning talent throughout Europe and provide them with a platform to showcase their skills and ingenuity when it comes to solving some of real estate’s current biggest challenges. Hines’ teams are made up of individuals from diverse backgrounds and disciplines and we find this enables us to develop the best solutions for our projects and clients. This year’s competition will have an even greater emphasis on regeneration with a strong ESG focus, since this is clearly the greatest challenge facing our industry. The eventual winners will receive a fast-track to the Hines internship programme as we remain fully committed to supporting the next generation of talent to flourish, indeed some of last years’ winners have proved to be valuable members of the Hines team.”

Lisette van Doorn, CEO of ULI Europe, said: “The urgent challenges that face us all, such as climate change, clearly show the critical need for our industry to collaborate and work collectively to find innovative solutions to problems, and share knowledge and best practice, now and in the future. This competition exemplifies the best of this approach, embracing multi-disciplinary, multi-generational collaboration among active, passionate and diverse people to drive learning, leadership and best practice when solving community and real estate challenges – just like ULI. The first two competitions generated lots of interest and engagement among students, not only in the competition but also ULI’s broader activities. This is important for us as these groups’ views are key to futureproof our cities and communities. We welcome this impressive pipeline of future talent to the industry – talent that needs to be nurtured, attracted, and retained. We’re excited to now call for entries in this third annual competition.”

Earlier this year, four students from The London Business School were announced as victors out of eight competing teams in the virtual final of the 2021 ULI Hines Student Competition – Europe, where students were challenged to present their vision of a future workplace, based on the redevelopment of an office site in Amsterdam.

Details of how to apply for the 2022 ULI Hines Student Competition – Europe are available at europe.uli.org/ulihinesstudentcompetition.