Study Highlights Importance of Specialized Education for Future Innovative Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurship education is becoming more available
at American universities, and researchers are looking at the results, according
to a new study (http://www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs353tot.pdf) supported
by the Office of Advocacy. The study is based on initial findings from a survey
funded with a challenge grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to
the Berkley Center for Entrepreneurial Studies of New York University.

Students who took an entrepreneurship class were more likely to have
engaged in three types of “innovation”: offering new products or services,
obtaining patents or copyrights, and using production techniques that differ
from those of the industry’s main competitor. Not surprisingly, graduates who
have taken such courses are significantly more likely to select careers in
entrepreneurship.

“Entrepreneurship education is more and more available to people looking at
career options, whether at the beginning of their working lives or in mid-
career,” said Advocacy Chief Economist Chad Moutray. “The Office of
Advocacy continues to examine the education of entrepreneurs and to
encourage colleges and universities to include entrepreneurial research and
data in their curricula.”

Results suggest that there is a strong correlation between respondents having
taken an entrepreneurial course and their self-reported skill in identifying new
business-related opportunities. The researchers hope additional data will help
instructors identify educational approaches to train prospective innovative
entrepreneurs by helping them identify promising technological developments
and other opportunities for innovation.

The study is based on a pilot survey of students at five universities conducted
in April and June 2008. Lessons learned in this analysis will be incorporated in
future surveys, which will include additional universities in the United States
and elsewhere.

The full study is available online at http://www.sba.gov/advo/. The Office of
Advocacy, the “small business watchdog” of the federal government, examines
the role and status of small business in the economy and independently
represents the views of small business to federal agencies, Congress, and the
President. It is the source for small business statistics presented in user-
friendly formats, and it funds research into small business issues.

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The Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is an
independent voice for small business within the federal government. The
presidentially appointed Chief Counsel for Advocacy advances the views,
concerns, and interests of small business before Congress, the White House,
federal agencies, federal courts, and state policymakers. For more information,
visit htp://www.sba.gov/advo, or call (202) 205-6533.