Factors Related To Entrepreneurial Knowledge in the Engineering Curriculum

Abstract

Given rapid globalization of the economy, engineers who are both innovative and entrepreneurial will be in high demand. As a result, entrepreneurship has become one of the fastest growing academic areas in engineering education. Yet, we understand little about what engineering students actually know or learn regarding entrepreneurship within an engineering curriculum. To address this issue, we have devised a multi-institution pilot study using the Entrepreneurship Knowledge Inventory (EKI), a tool that measures students' familiarity with fundamental entrepreneurship concepts and terms. The pilot study was conducted across six engineering schools and focused on identifying differences between freshmen and senior students relative to their self-reported knowledge of technology entrepreneurship terms and concepts. Also investigated were knowledge differences between senior engineering students with and without past entrepreneurial educational experience. Results found statistically significant differences between freshmen and senior engineering students in certain content areas, as well as between engineering seniors with experience versus those students without any entrepreneurship experience. These findings suggest that knowledge gaps exist among graduating engineering students, and identify areas for improvement in specific areas of entrepreneurship education.