The Evolution and Implications of Entrepreneurship Curriculum at Universities
Running Head: ENTPRENEURSHIP CURRICULUM AT UNIVERSITIES 1 The Evolution and Implications of Entrepreneurship Curriculum at Universities Kyle L. Harfst Southern Illinois University Carbondale OLJ25mar05003 Author:
Southern Illinois University Carbondale 0
0 Kyle L. Harfst Department of Workforce Education and Development Southern Illinois University Carbondale Carbondale , IL 62901-4605 618-453-3427 , USA
OLJ25mar05003
Author:
The Evolution and Implications of Entrepreneurship Curriculum at Universities ABSTRACT
The notion of entrepreneurship is not a new one. Neither is the idea of
entrepreneurship education. However, post-secondary entrepreneurship
curriculum has exploded the past thirty five years. A number of reasons
have helped to fuel this growth. An argument can be made that
entrepreneurs can be made and are not born. Entrepreneurship education is
the tool that encourages the transformation process. At the university
level, most entrepreneurship curriculum is taught in business schools and
colleges. Implications indicate that entrepreneurship education is good not
only for students who become entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship curriculum
stimulates creativity and ownership, two traits desired by corporate
America.
INTRODUCTION
The process of entrepreneurship is powerful. As stated by Kuratko & Hodgetts
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 solid business plan; and finally, the vision to
recognize opportunity where others see chaos, contradiction, and confusion. (p.
30)
One school of thought indicates that universities shape people’s minds and
influence people’s decisions toward career paths. A diverse, yet not contradictory school
of thought indicates that university curricula are a reflection of society’s wishes. No
matter who is correct, the growth of entrepreneurship curriculum in universities the past
thirty five years is exponential. This growth is not limited to the United States. Most
industrialized countries have entrepreneurship curriculum in its business school forefront.
In understanding this unprecedented growth, one must look at the history of
entrepreneurship, the creation of entrepreneurship curriculum and its defining role within
the university structure.
METHOD
A comprehensive secondary analysis was performed to support underlying
assumptions developed by the author while teaching non-credit entrepreneurship
seminars at a medium sized university in the Midwestern United States. Sources were
gathered from peer-reviewed journals, professional conference proceedings, published
governmental research, entrepreneurship-based foundations, and books. Implications and
recommendations proposed by the author were based on secondary research and the
author’s experiences as an entrepreneurship instructor.
THE HISTORY OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
One could argue that entrepreneurs have been around since the beginning of time.
Maranville (1992)
implied that the historical perspective of entrepreneurship has included
the hunter/gather age, the agricultural age, the mercantile age, the industrial age, and the
service age. Cunningham & Lischeron (1991) indicated that the current word
“entrepreneurship” comes from the French verb “entrependre” and the German word
“unternehmen,” both which mean to “undertake” (as cited in Carton , Hofer & Meeks,
1998, ¶ 9). Scholars Bygrave and Hofer in 1991 defined the entrepreneurial process as
involving all the functions, activities and actions associated with the perceiving of
opportunities and the creation of organizations to pursue them (as cited in Carton , Hofer
& Meeks,1998). The modern concept of entrepreneurship was introduced by Schumpeter
(1934, p. 74) who defined entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship as follows: “the carrying
out of new combinations we call enterprise; the individuals whose function it is to carry
them out we call entrepreneurs.”
The explanation of entrepreneurship is best viewed on continuum. A sociological
view of entrepreneurship lies on one end of the spectrum while the opposing end
indicates that entrepreneurship is no more than business development. Carton, Hofer &
Meeks (1998,p. 5) stated that “the essence of entrepreneurship is the pursuit of
discontinuous opportunity involving the creation of an organization with the expectation
of value creation to the participants”. Gartner (1988) was slightly more elementary with
his definition. He indicated that entrepreneurship is the creation of organizations.
Maranville (1992)
indicated that the power of business ownership is also called
entrepreneurship. He further stated that this interpretati (...truncated)