Boom or bust? Embedding entrepreneurship in education in Australia

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the status of entrepreneurship education (EE) in Australia, replicating and expanding a similar study in 2015. The aim is to review neoteric global best practice EE initiatives, enabling the examination and embedding of EE offerings and initiatives at all 40 higher education institutions (HEIs) in Australia. Design/methodology/approach The authors introduce a review of prominent and recent global EE scholarship, enabling an iterative and emergent inquiry perspective aligned to inductive and nascent multi-method empirical research associated with theoretical underpinnings of symbolic and substantive management theory. Findings This paper highlights the sparse and inconsistent distribution of EE programs and initiatives across all 40 Australian HEIs, particularly against the backdrop of rapidly expanding start-up and entrepreneurship ecosystems. Furthermore, outcomes provide best practice EE initiatives, which included staff mobility and transferability of skills. HEIs in Australia are experiencing a moderate EE boom, albeit marginally down on global EE transformation initiatives. Research limitations/implications Limitation of the data is subject to availability and accuracy of online documents and material resources, although implications have been mitigated using multi-method research design. Practical implications The findings provide critical grounding for researchers, practitioners and HEIs wishing to enhance EE within ever-expanding entrepreneurship ecosystems. Originality/value This study is the first multi-methods inquiry into the status of EE in Australia, consisting of quantitative, qualitative and algorithmic methods.

Government institutions, entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurship education programmes in Malaysia

“…This study is in essence a replication and extension of Maritz et al (2015) and Maritz et al (2019). This study provides a nascent archetype regarding iterative open-ended inquiry (Edmondson and McManus, 2007) to provide inference on the status of EEPs in Malaysia.…”

“…Entrepreneurship education (EE) – programmes and research in entrepreneurship – is increasingly viewed as a source of economic growth and revitalisation (Hägg and Gabrielsson, 2019; Maritz et al , 2019), consequently receiving growing attention from academics, practitioners and policy-makers. This study uses the term EE from a start‐up perspective, focussing on venture creation and an enterprising perspective, focussing more broadly on personal development, mindset, skills and abilities (Jones et al , 2012; Maritz and Donovan, 2015; QAA, 2018).…”

“…This study uses the term EE from a start‐up perspective, focussing on venture creation and an enterprising perspective, focussing more broadly on personal development, mindset, skills and abilities (Jones et al , 2012; Maritz and Donovan, 2015; QAA, 2018). Recent developments include entrepreneurship ecosystems and institutional contexts in the development of EE (Looi and Klobas, 2020; Roundy et al , 2017; Spigel, 2017), particularly regarding the growth and interest in entrepreneurship education programmes (EEPs) (Jones et al , 2012; Maritz and Brown, 2013; Maritz et al , 2015; Maritz et al , 2019).…”

“…Global specific contexts have resulted in sparse research on EEPs within country perspectives, even more so when comparing multiple higher education institutions (HEIs) within country contexts and perspectives (Ahmad and Buchanan, 2015; Belitski and Heron, 2017; Kuratko and Morris, 2018; OECD/EU, 2018). Furthermore, research on EE is usually centred on students, outcomes, pedagogy and content of individual EEPs (Fayolle and Gailly, 2008; Hägg and Gabrielsson, 2019), as opposed to comparison among multiple EEPs (Maritz et al , 2019).…”

“…This study acknowledges the critical and dynamic influence of contexts (Welter, 2011; Zahra, 2007; Zahra and Wright, 2011; Zahra et al , 2014) by linking macro context of the government institutions with micro contexts of EE and EEPs (Bruton et al , 2010). This study commences with a review of entrepreneurship and EE in Malaysia, followed by replication and extension of research by Maritz et al (2015) and Maritz et al (2019) in the form of a quantitative examination of EEP offerings by public and private HEIs in Malaysia. In the Findings and discussion section, this study provides outcomes of the quantitative component, concluding with implications and suggestions for directions of future research in this rapid-changing environment.…”