That windfall came after the three 23-year-olds won the Auckland final of an Alternative Budget Competition involving four student teams at the Auckland Business School on Tuesday night. The other three teams were from Auckland.
The event was run by the Management Consulting Club, a group of students from the Auckland school, and sponsored the Independent Policy Institute, a think tank focused on public policy issues.
A similar pre-Budget event was held in Auckland in 2010, but this was the first time a non-Auckland University team had taken part in the finals.
"We're really pleased," Mr Blane said.
The three were all members of the Otago Business Case Club, a student-run group dedicated to organising business competitions.
Because of that involvement with business-related competitions, they were used to thinking on their feet and responding quickly to questions from judges.
Good teamwork had also been a key factor in the contest, during which three-member teams had to make a 10-minute alternative Budget presentation and then answer questions from the judges for another 15 minutes.
The Otago team advocated gradually increasing the retirement age, over a 10-year period, and introducing a capital gains tax.
