Apply your skills to solve real business issues.
Participate in one of the most impactful and intensive courses with the experiential learning STAR program. You will work in diverse student teams — guided by a faculty advisor — to solve complex business problems for corporate partners.
Identifying new opportunities for Coca-Cola in Asia. Helping NASCAR reach new audiences. Crafting an innovative solution to a sustainability issue for Procter & Gamble. Creating a new business strategy for GlaxoSmithKline. Developing a business plan for a women’s hospital in Africa or a strategic plan a nonprofit educational organization for underprivileged children. These are just a few examples of the 450+ business challenges STAR teams have solved for their corporate and nonprofit partners since 2005.
"I am amazed by the incredible impact STAR has had on my personal and professional development. I have had the opportunity to improve my communication, teamwork, and problem-solving skills, all of which will be invaluable as I pursue my future internship and work opportunities."
Your STAR experience impacts your entire career.
In the real-world STAR experience, you will advance your interpersonal skills, increase industry knowledge, and apply practical tools that you can leverage over your entire career. To provide you with the best learning experience possible, your team engages in relationship building activities and receives resources for effective and efficient project management. A faculty advisor dedicated to your team and the STAR staff support your team throughout the journey.
A systematic approach leads to effective teamwork.
The STAR program is designed for MBA, MSM, and Undergraduate Business students from any concentration and with various career paths — not only those in consulting. We match you based on experience and career aspirations with STAR projects with the goal of creating diverse and productive teams. As an MBA student, you can also indicate your interest in serving as a project leader. MSM (Master of Science in Management) student teams typically tackle a business challenge for a nonprofit, government organization, or start-up.
Some corporate and nonprofit partners invite the team to travel to their location in the U.S. A very small number of teams may travel to the corporate partner abroad for two weeks in May to conduct research and present their work. You may be selected for this type of STAR experience only if you indicate interest in a STAR Global Immersion Project in your application.
Eligibility and prerequisites/corequisites: To participate in STAR, you must complete the Consulting Skills and Frameworks (CSF) course by the time STAR begins in mid-January. E-/W-EMBA students, take CSF as a weekend class in December. MBA@UNC students have the option to participate in the Consulting Summit in December, but are encouraged to instead complete the full mod CSF class.
Undergraduate students, please complete the short Application for the fall CSF class by April 7, 2025..
STAR is a high demand and competitive program.* Students are selected based on their interests and experience and fit with the corporate partner projects.
*For MSM students, STAR is an integral part of their program.
Time commitment: Projects run for 14-15 weeks from January to late April/early May. Some pre-work also takes place in November/December. The formal project Launch will be all day in mid to late January. STAR projects are demanding learning experiences with deadlines and comprehensive deliverables. As a STAR team member, you spend 10+ hours a week on the project. As a project leader, you spend more than 10 hours a week on STAR.
Cost: STAR is a credit-bearing course, and there is generally no additional expense, except for the following:
- MBA@UNC and Evening, Weekend, and Charlotte Executive MBA students pay for their travel expenses to participate in the Launch event (required) in January in Chapel Hill.
- Students interested and selected for a STAR Global Immersion Project pay a $1,750 program fee and cover their travel expenses (airfare, visa, vaccinations, etc.). Some in-country expenses are covered by the STAR program and the corporate partner.
"It was extremely rewarding to start out knowing nothing about the company and industry and end up delivering a recommendation that the client found extremely insightful and helpful."
Apply in early fall for the following spring.
Please join the STAR information session to learn more about the program. Watch out for an email invitation and announcements by the programs about the information sessions.
Check back here in August for the application link and apply by October 1.
