A New Model of Entrepreneurship Education: Implications for Central and Eastern European Universities

Abstract

This paper explains a new model of entrepreneurship education at university level. The early development of potential entrepreneurs through education, experience and nurturing may be one of the most important initiatives that business and other academic schools can pursue, because the role of entrepreneurship in creating new businesses (as well as in innovating within existing companies) can have a profound effect on the national economy. The entrepreneurial ingredients of a university business education include, among other things, a culture of learning in the classroom that fosters entrepreneurial thinking; experience in new business start-ups; and exposure to entrepreneurs through entrepreneurial retreats that ignite the spirit of entrepreneurship. The attributes at the heart of entrepreneurship include creativity, persistence and innovation – attributes that need to be identified, nurtured and freely expressed in the classroom. In order to realize this goal, the professor must be both educator and mentor. A focus on innovation is the most salient feature of an entrepreneurial classroom, wherein the professor's role shifts from the mere delivery of information to the true facilitation of learning. The curriculum and individual courses must be well designed and implemented, and a balance between analytical and creative approaches to instruction must be carefully crafted to tap the inner resources of the mind for creative thought. By leading the efforts for change, universities in Central and Eastern Europe have a great opportunity to capitalize on the market economy. With the advances in innovation, new product development and new management thinking by companies in the global economy, business educators should create new entrepreneurship programmes that are capable of preparing and educating students for a new world. The proposed model includes entrepreneurial retreats for the development of entrepreneurial thinking, since this type of thinking often requires larger doses of educational medicine. Other parts of this integrated model include new curricula and individualized entrepreneurial prescriptions, apprenticeships and opportunity centres.