1987-2007: 20 YEARS OF PROMOTING ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION IN EUROPE

1. 1987-2007: 20 YEARS OF PROMOTING ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION IN EUROPE Karen Wilson, Advisor, EFER NCGE IEEC 2007 Building the Evidence Base Cambridge, September 2007

2. 2 Agenda The Importance of Building the Evidence Base Background on EFER Recent EFER studies Methodologies and Lessons Opportunities and Challenges for the Future

3. 3 The Importance of Building the Evidence Base Awareness Tremendous amount of activity, important to capture a view on as much of it as possible. Until recently, the focus has been mostly on certain types of schools and programs � we are missing a huge piece of the picture! Common terminology Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Enterprise, Innovation Still a great deal of confusion and mixed use of these terms Complicated further on an international scale due to varying language translations.

4. 4 The Importance of Building the Evidence Base (cont.) Monitoring trends Analyzing growth in entrepreneurship education across different types of schools and universities, regions and countries. Commonalities, differences, new approaches Sharing practices Looking in-depth at existing programs and sharing practices and learning across universities. Clear objectives and measurement Understanding clearly from the start which outcomes are desired and being able to measure the results.

5. 5 EFER Mission The European Foundation for Entrepreneurship Research (EFER) fosters and promotes research and teaching in the field of entrepreneurship at institutions of higher education across Western and Eastern Europe. 1987-2007: 20 YEARS www.efer.eu

6. 6 EFER�s Activities are Focused on Five Main Areas Initiate entrepreneurship training programs for European professors Harvard Business School EECPCL Program 2005-2008 Build and strengthen faculty networks and collaboration across national borders in Europe Two EFER/EECPCL roundtable network meetings a year Encourage and support the exchange of faculty between countries Pilot one week EFER Bologna Faculty Exchange Program to launch during academic year 2007/2008 Support the development of European entrepreneurship cases and course materials Conduct surveys and research

7. 7 EFER�s Pan-European Reach�

8. 8 � Drives EFER�s Pan-European Network

9. 9 Faculty Networking, Collaboration & Exchange

10. 10 Surveys and Research Surveys and research studies Studies on entrepreneurship education in Europe Comparisons between the U.S. and Europe Identification of entrepreneurs: creation of Europe�s 500 Recent studies Universities as Entrepreneurial Hubs: A study of 22 Universities Across Europe and the U.S. (2007) Mapping of Entrepreneurship in German Speaking Countries (2007) 8 Centers of Dynamic Entrepreneurship (2006) Breeding Gazelles: The Role of European Universities (2004) European Entrepreneurship Education Pilot Survey (2004) Red Paper on Entrepreneurship (2001) Developing Entrepreneurships Programs in MBA Schools (2000) European Entrepreneurship and Funding (2000)

11. 11 Key Findings from 2004 Survey Dramatic growth in entrepreneurship education in Europe is expected to continue. However, entrepreneurship remains primarily elective. Entrepreneurship still tends to be offered in stand alone courses, rather than being integrated across the curriculum. A greater critical mass of entrepreneurship faculty, research and course material is needed. Networks between faculty teaching entrepreneurs across Europe are limited. Most survey respondents work at academic institutions in their home country. Less than 20% spend time teaching outside of the country. While innovative teaching approaches are being tested throughout Europe, there has been little sharing of these practices across borders. There is a strong interest for further training in the teaching of entrepreneurship.

12. 12 Is There Too Much Focus on The Start-up Phase? Many respondents commented that the heavy focus on the start-up phase may be overshadowing the more important trends in entrepreneurship in Europe: Culture, attitudes, skills Growth phases of entrepreneurial firms Difference between SMEs vs high growth companies Intrapreneurship within companies The percentage of alumni from European schools starting companies is also still relatively small, only 10% according to survey respondents: However, only 50% of the schools currently track alumni starting companies Also, most graduates start companies later in their career and, with many of the European programs being relatively new, it is hard to measure the impact of these programs.

13. 13 Survey Conclusions: More Focus Needed in Number of Areas Curriculum development Creating a critical mass of well trained entrepreneurship professors Building sustainable funding for entrepreneurship education Cross-border faculty and research collaborations Facilitation of spin outs from technical and scientific institutions

14. 14 Key Points from German-speaking University Mapping There is much more entrepreneurship related activity at German-speaking universities than previously thought Importance of looking beyond the �entrepreneurship� label Many Chairs, Centers and activities are �entrepreneurship affiliated� and should be included The Chairs are relatively well-staffed and serve as an important hub for providing teaching, generating research, launching activities and raising awareness. The German-speaking technical and scientific universities have been front-runners in entrepreneurship Only 2 out of 17 technical universities did NOT have an entrepreneurship or affiliated chair. Phase II: Conduct interviews to look more closely at the technical universities and their activities.

15. 15 Current: Universities as Entrepreneurial Hubs Academic institutions need to facilitate entrepreneurial activity by creating strong networks around them.

16. 16 Several Key Themes Are Evident Across Many Schools Curriculum Entrepreneurship courses offered for increasing number and range of students Degree programs or specialization available Cross-disciplinary initiatives Joint ventures/partnerships with other departments and schools (often between business schools and technical universities but also increasing with medicine, arts, design, etc.) Outreach Strong links and partnerships with the business community and local entrepreneurs Recognition and involvement of the school�s alumni often leading to significant financial support

17. 17 Key Themes (cont.) Funding Funded Chairs and Entrepreneurship Centers to support and develop university entrepreneurship teaching, research and activities But mostly funded by the public sector, not the private sector (as in the U.S.) Funds and support for entrepreneurial ideas developed by researchers, students and alumni Technology Transfer Programs to encourage the creation of spin outs (from the technical universities) Licensing/relationship building with technology firms (local and global) Continued learning, development and exchange Developing and sharing entrepreneurship research, courses materials and cases Encouraging exchange of practices with other schools and across borders, including running workshops and training programs for teachers

18. 18 Methodologies of Recent EFER Research

19. 19 Survey/Research Process Lessons Initial mapping and online searches useful as a baseline but insufficient in themselves Many websites are not comprehensive and/or up-to-date Surveys and interviews are necessary for accurate, current information Finding the right contact(s) within the university is very important Institutional view vs individual faculty perspective Information sharing within the university is usually an issue Senior administrators are often not fully aware of the scope of entrepreneurship teaching and activities Individual faculty and/or entrepreneurship champions do not always have a university-wide perspective There are tremendous differences across Europe in terms of systems, titles (Chairs, Professorships, Centers) and definitions This needs to be taken into account when conducting cross-Europe studies and comparisons.

20. 20 Opportunities and Challenges for the Future

21. 21 Contact Information European Foundation for Entrepreneurship Research Arena Office Park 1, Marathon 9H 1213 PE Hilversum, the Netherlands Phone: +31(0)35 642 0709 Fax: +31(0)35 642 0609 Bert Twaalfhoven: btwaalfhoven@efer.eu Karen Wilson: kwilson@efer.eu www.efer.eu