Entrepreneurship Education through Successful Entrepreneurial Models in Higher Education Institutions

Abstract

In higher education institutions, entrepreneurship learning based on successful entrepreneurial role models may promote education for sustainable development. Several theoretical perspectives, such as the human capital theory, the entrepreneurial self-efficacy and self-determination theory, argue that entrepreneurship education is positively correlated with entrepreneurial intentions of students, as it provides adequate know-how and skills and motivates them to develop their entrepreneurial careers. In entrepreneurship education programmes, exposure to successful entrepreneurial models could be a significant factor for stimulating students’ confidence in their ability to start a business and for improving their attitudes towards entrepreneurship. This study aims (i) to identify characteristics viewed by students as being specific to a successful entrepreneur, (ii) to establish the influence of exposure to successful entrepreneurial role models (chosen by students) during entrepreneurship education classes on student entrepreneurial intentions, and (iii) to assess how such exposure influences the attitudes of students towards entrepreneurship. For this purpose, the authors ran a pilot experiment with 30 graduate students enrolled in a Business Creation course using a research methodology that combined qualitative techniques with quantitative measures. Content and statistical analyses were utilised to examine differences in student entrepreneurial intentions and attitudes towards entrepreneurship after being exposed to successful entrepreneurial models. Our study provides evidence that entrepreneurship education based on successful entrepreneurial role models may positively influence the entrepreneurial attitudes and intentions of students and could lead to higher orientation of student perception towards social benefits of entrepreneurship (new jobs) compared to financial ones (high income). However, our findings stress that if educators want to improve the efficiency of education focused on developing entrepreneurial skills, graduate programmes should be designed differently for business and non-business students, since studying successful entrepreneurial stories impacts these two groups differently.

Does entrepreneurial knowledge influence vocational students’ intention? Lessons from Indonesia

“…Increased students' knowledge as an impact of entrepreneurship education of students corroborates some earlier works. For instance, Tshikovhi and Shambare (2015), Boldureanu et al (2020) confirm the close relationship between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial knowledge. Our finding implies that an individual with high-level education will potentially become an entrepreneur in the future.…”

“…Entrepreneurial human capital (EHC) is a specialisation of high-level specific entrepreneurial competencies and knowledge, which is very important, for example, in sales, negotiation, product development, and risk assessment (Ni & Ye, 2018). Based on EHC theory, a person with a high level of education has high probability to become an entrepreneur (Cowling, Liu, & Zhang, 2018). This entrepreneur will potentially combine various types of knowledge and skills in developing good products or services to meet market tastes and demands.…”

Country’s Entrepreneurial Environment Predictors for Starting a New Venture—Evidence for Romania

“…Building an entrepreneurial spirit means capturing the thinking, ambition and drive of the entrepreneurs as well as the qualities that fuel the actions they initiate [40]. Entrepreneurial spirit is an attitude and a drive that encompasses the desire to start a new venture as a desirable career opportunity [16,52]. It develops in individuals who demonstrate a true passion for building something great for their community regardless of the resources they hold and they are willing to push themselves to the limits to achieve big goals [40,42].…”

How to Shape the Employees’ Sustainable Work Attitude: The Moderating Effect of Supervisor Attitudes

“…Segovia-Pérez et al [8] demonstrate that the purpose of education is to ensure that the educated employee obtain the necessary skills, abilities and tools, and to improve their self-perceptions, networking, and motivations. Boldureanu et al [9] point out that shaping an entrepreneur can be achieved through employee training and emphasize that education plays a key role in the final result of the enterprise. In addition, in order to improve the creativity of employees, organizations are gradually using different education and training methods to cultivate employees [10].…”