Instilling the Entrepreneurial Mindset by International Development Project Work

Abstract

the areas of semiconductor microelectronics, renewable energy systems and power electronics. He has been working on thin film solar cell research since 1979 including a Sabbatical Leave at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in 1993. He has also worked on several photovoltaic system projects Dr. Singh has also worked on electric vehicle research, working on battery monitoring and management systems funded primarily by federal agencies (over $3.5 million of funding).Dr. Singh has consulted for several companies including Ford Motor Company and Epuron, LLC. He has also served as a reviewer for the US Department of Energy and National Science Foundation. Dr Singh has over 100 conference and journal publications and holds six issued US patents.Dr. Singh's recent work is focused on improved, energy efficient devices and systems for use in rural health clinics in developing countries. Mariavirginia1965@gmail.com Maria Virginia Moncada AbstractThe entrepreneurial mindset has a number of attributes including curiosity about the world around you, discovery of opportunities, prototyping and vetting technology/business solutions and then executing on the venture. International development projects offer many possibilities to learn about an environment that students are not used to seeing and through observation, see opportunities for technology-based solutions to developing world problems. We have used this methodology for several senior design projects in the past and more recently have developed courses specifically to develop these attributes in electrical and computer engineering students.A two course sequence has been piloted for the first time this year. In the first course, taken by students in their junior year, the students are given the cultural context in a developing country (in particular, the present course's focus has been on Nicaragua). This topic is followed by a Spring break trip to Nicaragua and the students live out in rural communities to discover potential projects that have technical merit and offer potential business opportunities. The project proposals are then developed by students from a US university and a Nicaraguan university.In the second course, in parallel with the actual project design, the students take a business model development course to understand business models and how to produce them. They then use this knowledge to develop a business model for their particular projects.In the paper, details of the two courses will be presented along with student outcomes being measured in terms of how well the entrepreneurial mindset is being instilled.

A Systematic Review of the Impacts of Entrepreneurial Support Programs in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Fields

“…Other definitions described it as a set of characteristics or attributes . For example, one article described it as, “The entrepreneurial mindset has a number of attributes including curiosity about the world around you, discovery of opportunities, prototyping and vetting technology/business solutions, and then executing on the venture (Singh & Moncada, 2015, p. 1).” Another article defined it as, “a set of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that drive innovation” (Long & Sun, 2018, p. 1). Some articles equated entrepreneurial mindset with Dweck’s (2008) conception of growth and fixed mindset, which constitutes a different construct.…”

Cultivating the Entrepreneurial Mindset through Design: Insights from Thematic Analysis of First-year Engineering Students' Reflections

“…Efforts to encourage students' development of EM have been implemented in a variety of different courses and extracurricular events at universities across the United States. The most common courses in which EM has been integrated are those which focus on engineering design, or project-based courses at all levels (freshman through senior) (Bell-Huff, Carpenter, & Gerhart, 2016;Cook & Cuper, 2010;Fry, Jordan, Leman, Garner, & Thomas, 2010;A L Gerhart & Carpenter, 2013;Andrew L. Gerhart, Carpenter, Fletcher, & Meyer, 2014;Kim et al, 2016;Rayess, 2016;Riofrio et al, 2015;Singh, Klingler, Dougherty, & Moncada, 2015). At several institutions, EM has been integrated into first year engineering courses through hands-on projects and activities (Condoor & Mcquilling, 2009;Fry & Van Treuren, 2016;Andrew L. Gerhart et al, 2014;Rayess, 2016;Reid & Ferguson, 2011;Riofrio et al, 2015;Thoroughman, Hruschka, & Widder, 2014).…”

Board 4: Computers in Education Division: Partnering to Develop Educational Software Applications: A Four-year Retrospective Study

“…Similarly, the concept of incorporating the entrepreneurial mindset [6,7] into engineering education has resulted in project-based service learning experiences. For example, students enrolled in a course at Villanova are first given the cultural context of a developing country and then live in one of that country's rural communities during spring break [8]. The exposure to and immersion within the new culture allows for the first-hand discovery of potential projects that can exhibit both technical merit and potential business opportunities.…”