The Role of Business Incubators in Promoting Entrepreneurship of Higher Education Institutions

Abstract

This study aims to measure the influence of university incubators on promoting the culture of entrepreneurship and to what extent these incubators guide and motivate students, teaching staff, and university employees to achieve entrepreneurial achievements in various disciplines and fields. The questionnaire was used as a tool to collect the required data. The study population consists of students, teaching staff, administrators, and employees from almost all Jordanian universities, which are estimated to be more than tens of thousands. We distributed the questionnaire among 14 universities, and only 310 responses were collected. Based on the results of the questionnaire that were statistically analyzed, presented, and processed we believe that business incubators are like any existing project. Universities must pay attention to all matters that may lead to their success, including attention to all administrative, financial, and marketing matters, in addition to paying attention to all work they carry out, including the mechanism of helping small projects. It is necessary to introduce an entrepreneurship course within the compulsory requirements at the university level and for first or second-year students, because of its importance in spreading the culture of entrepreneurship among students. We hope that our recommendations will change the horizons of the university community and intellectual level and convert graduate students from “job seekers” into “job creators” which strongly contribute to solving unemployment and poverty problems.