Student Impact Of An Entrepreneurship Course
- Conference
- Location
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Honolulu, Hawaii
- Publication Date
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June 24, 2007
- Start Date
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June 24, 2007
- End Date
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June 27, 2007
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation
- Page Count
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14
- Page Numbers
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12.1312.1 - 12.1312.14
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--2300
- Permanent URL
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https://strategy.asee.org/2300
- Download Count
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424
Paper Authors
Akash Choudhary University of Missouri
Akash Choudhary graduated from the Modern School in New Delhi and went on to receive his bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from KDK College of Engineering, Nagpur University in India. In January 2004, he enrolled as a master’s student in Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Department at the University of Missouri-Rolla (UMR) and graduated in May 2006.
Donald Myers University of Missouri
Don Myers is a Professor of the Engineering Management Department at the University of Missouri – Rolla. He holds BSME, MSME, MBA, and JD degrees. He is a registered Missouri Professional Engineer, a member of the Missouri Bar, and a registered Patent Attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Prior to joining UMR, he served in various industrial assignments for four Fortune 100 companies. He served on the U.S. Senate Science Committee staff and as the Science Adviser to the Governor of Missouri. His research interests include issues related to management of technology, technology transfer, technology policy, strategic technology management, and the legal aspects of technology. He is a past ASEE Zone III Chair and a member of the ASEE Board of Directors.
Halvard Nystrom University of Missouri
Halvard E. Nystrom is an Associate Professor of Engineering Management at the University of Missouri – Rolla, where he has been a full time research and teaching faculty for ten years. He received his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering with an emphasis in Management of Technology from Arizona State University. He earned his MBA from Stanford and a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana. His research interests are in marketing, technology management, financial management and engineering education. He also has fourteen years of industrial experience with Digital Equipment Corp., Castle and Cooke Inc. and Westinghouse (R&D Center). Dr. Nystrom was awarded a Fulbright Scholar Grant in 2005 to teach in Oman.
Mihir Gokhale University of Missouri
Mihir Gokhale is a master student in Engineering Management at the University of Missouri – Rolla. He received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Pune University, India.
Abstract
NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract
Student Impact of an Entrepreneurship Course Abstract Many individuals believe that entrepreneurship cannot be taught. They believe that success is primarily depended on personality characteristics that would not be impacted by course work. This paper investigates the educational impact of one entrepreneurship course, and how it affects the entrepreneurial decisions and interest in entrepreneurship of the engineering students who took it. This compares with earlier studies that have focused on the impact of entrepreneurship courses on career decisions of students with management or other non- engineering backgrounds. This research is based on a survey of 122 engineering students who took an entrepreneurship class offered by the University during the last 25 years.
Students were asked to provide their perspective on the impact this course had on their career. They were asked how the course impacted their understanding and interest in entrepreneurship, if it raised their awareness of this career choice, if it impacted the career path they considered, if it affected the career they chose, if they learned useful techniques that helped them in their careers or in communicating with entrepreneurs. With this information, an assessment can be made of the impact that this course, and the study of entrepreneurship, had on their careers. The students are also asked to describe their entrepreneurial activities since graduating.
The course was the most often cited of the many choices that were given which influenced them to become involved with entrepreneurship. The conclusion of the study is that this course had a significant impact on them. Even though it did not have a major impact on the career path considered and chosen initially by the students, the result of this study suggests that these engineering students perceive they have become more interested in entrepreneurship after taking the course and many perceive to have become successful entrepreneurs.
Introduction “Entrepreneurship is a dynamic process of vision, change, and creation. It requires an application of energy and passion towards the creation and implementation of new ideas and creative solutions. Essential ingredients include the willingness to take calculated risks in terms of time, equity, or career; the ability to formulate an effective venture team; the creative skill to marshal needed resources; and fundamental skill of building a solid business plan; and finally, the vision to recognize opportunity where others see chaos, contradiction, and confusion” 1.
Entrepreneurship is more than the mere creation of business. The characteristics of seeking opportunities, taking risks beyond security, and having the tenacity to push an idea through to reality combined into a special perspective of the entrepreneurs. An “entrepreneurial perspective” can be developed in individuals. This perspective can be exhibited inside or outside an organization, in profit or not-for-profit enterprises, and in business or non-business activities for the purpose of bringing forth creative ideas. Thus, entrepreneurship is an integrated concept that permeates an individual’s business in an innovative manner. It is this perspective that has revolutionized the way business is conducted at every level and in every country.
Until 1970, very few universities offered entrepreneurship courses. The Harvard Business School introduced an entrepreneurship course in 1945, apparently in response to students who were returning from World War II military service to an economy that was in transition due to the collapse of the weapons industries. The subject of entrepreneurship was not generally
Choudhary, A., & Myers, D., & Nystrom, H., & Gokhale, M. (2007, June), Student Impact Of An Entrepreneurship Course Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--2300
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