Paper Authors

Abstract

NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract

Development of a Biotechnology Option Area for an Entrepreneurial Certificate Program Abstract

An undergraduate certificate program in entrepreneurship and innovation has been developed at --- University in collaboration with the --- Center for Entrepreneurship. Option areas are offered to students enrolled in the certificate program in order to explore specific discipline areas or markets. The objective of this paper is to discuss the development of a course within an interdisciplinary undergraduate biotechnology program as an option for students pursuing the entrepreneurship certificate. The course included the incorporation of guest speakers from biotechnology industries and academia that shared their experiences with the students. In addition, students learned interpersonal skills by working on interdisciplinary teams in order to complete their practical laboratory activities. The biotechnology option course has provided experiences that enabled the students to • understand the current trends and emerging technology within the biotechnology industry • identify where gaps exist between current technology needs and existing solutions • recognize existing gaps between biotechnology needs and current solutions as opportunities • explore potential solutions for new technology development to address identified needs within the biotechnology industry.

Introduction

Science and technology impact the economy. In order for science and technology to continue to drive the economy, students need to learn innovation, which has become even more important now with a global economy. In a recent report from the National Academy of Engineering, creativity was cited as one of the key attributes for the engineer of 2020: • “Creativity (invention, innovation, thinking outside the box, art) is an indispensable quality for engineering, and given the growing scope of the challenges ahead and the complexity and diversity of the technologies of the 21st century, creativity will grow in importance.1, 2”

Skills identified by the National Academies are in agreement with desirable skills identified by recent workforce reports. In the meeting summary for the Pan- Organizational Summit on the U.S. Science and Engineering Workforce, technical skills combined with a strong math and science background and integrated with problem- solving, critical-thinking, and teamwork skills are sorely needed by modern manufacturing as well as by other sectors.3 This is also true as science and technology are integrated within the industry of biotechnology.

Biotechnology refers to harnessing the properties of a living organism to develop and manufacture products that benefit human life. Although the biotechnology field has

• Citation

• Format
  • APA
  • APA - LaTeX bibitem
  • MLA
  • MLA - LaTeX bibitem
  • Bibtex
  • EndNote - RIS

Clase, K. (2007, June), Development Of A Biotechnology Option Area For An Entrepreneurial Certificate Program Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--2664