Factors and maturity level of entrepreneurial universities in Spain

Abstract

Purpose The entrepreneurial university is being widely studied, given its importance as an agent in economic and social development. This paper presents the findings of a study that had a twofold objective. First, it sought to establish a model of maturity for the measurement of the level of academic entrepreneurship in universities. Second, it aimed to apply this maturity model to a sufficiently wide and varied sample of faculties to discover their current level of academic entrepreneurship, as well as their differences by area of knowledge, type of university and autonomous region in Spain. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire was designed with items grouped into 14 blocks that defined the entrepreneurial university according to the model previously developed. The questionnaire was answered by 84 deans/directors belonging to different faculties/universities from six Spanish regions. Findings The findings showed that the Spanish universities stand out in four areas: internationalisation, use of active methodologies, mission and strategy and management team support. However, the legal and administrative context, the funds for entrepreneurship and the training of staff in entrepreneurship are not sufficiently developed. Significant differences were observed between regions but not by type of university or area of knowledge. Originality/value The results provide an innovative model that explains the factors that define the entrepreneurial university, as well as guidelines for universities to move forward in developing stages.

Developing the Entrepreneurial University: Factors of Influence

“…In order to meet the research objectives, a questionnaire was used that had been previously designed and validated by Errasti et al [27] to measure the maturity of academic entrepreneurship among different faculties. This questionnaire, based on the original instrument by Markuerkiaga et al [38], consisted of 14 blocks of mostly closed questions, with the inclusion of a smaller number of open questions to allow participants to provide evidence and/or add comments and clarifications.…”

“…Since the studies published to date are not focused on models that encompass all the factors covered in the literature, there is a need to further the knowledge of the determinant factors of the entrepreneurial university, and the extent of their influence. To this end, Errasti et al [27] devised and validated a model of maturity for the measurement of the level of academic entrepreneurship among faculties and universities. The model included thirteen factors: Legal and administrative context; business and organisational context; entrepreneurship funding; training in entrepreneurship for faculty staff; inclusion of professionals from businesses and organisations in the development and delivery of the curriculum; mission and strategy; policies and procedures; support from the management team; organisational design; training and research in entrepreneurship; extra-curricular training; active methodologies; and internationalisation.…”

“…The study conducted by Errasti et al [27] concluded that there was a modest degree of development in the various elements involved in the entrepreneurial university, and that there is still much room for improvement. It also showed that the most developed factors among Spanish universities were internationalisation, use of active methodologies, mission and strategy and support from the management team.…”

“…Errasti et al [27] presented a descriptive analysis of the factors that contribute to the development of the entrepreneurial university. Following this study, the main research question of the present paper is: What are the existing relations among these factors?…”

An Empirical Analysis and Promotion Strategy Based on Evaluation of Entrepreneurial Education Capacity Based on CIPP Perspective: A Case Study of Jiangxi Province

“…After the research on the quality evaluation system of innovation and entrepreneurship in universities in China, we found that research on the effectiveness of innovation and entrepreneurship education and the attainment of goals are more and more, and fewer studies are needed to evaluate and improve the quality of innovation and entrepreneurship education. The weight of indicators determines the tendency is more prominent, the logic and relevance between the indicators are poor, and the objectivity and rationality of the evaluation results are difficult to guarantee [3][4][5][6]. Therefore, as one of the important links in innovation and entrepreneurship education in universities, the research on the evaluation system of innovation and entrepreneurship education quality is particularly urgent.…”