Entrepreneurship education confined to business schools - report

The report, entitled Entrepreneurship Education in Ireland – Towards Creating the Entrepreneurial Graduate, investigates the current state of entrepreneurship education in higher education in Ireland and was launched today by the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan TD.

According to its findings, while 78pc of students in higher-education expressed an interest in starting their own business at some point in future, entrepreneurship education is not readily available to all students and is delivered mainly only in business schools.

The report was researched and written by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) funded Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) Accelerated Campus Entrepreneurship (ACE) consortium – an innovative collaboration between Institute of Technology Blanchardstown, Cork Institute of Technology, Sligo Institute of Technology and NUI Galway. The consortium is led by Dundalk Institute of Technology.

Examining practices across almost the entire third and fourth-level sector in institutes of technology and universities, the SIF ACE initiative aims to develop a range of educational programmes that will create entrepreneurial graduates who can generate indigenous employment or deliver benefit to employers of all kinds.

Insufficient joined-up thinking
The report also showed that there is a lack of communication about, and visibility of, entrepreneurial supports and policies, and insufficient joined-up thinking between institutions, academics and practitioners.

It also revealed that despite some initiatives, industry engagement with the third-level sector is neither widespread nor intensive and that entrepreneurship education is under-resourced and lacks an articulated strategic policy.

The report’s findings also suggested that higher education institutions need to adopt a framework to embed entrepreneurship education across all disciplines, and that experiential learning, not theory based lectures, will most benefit entrepreneurial students.

Fostering a new entrepreneurial culture in Ireland
Welcoming publication of the report, the Tánaiste said: “Central to maximising the job creation potential of our investment in the smart economy is the fostering of a new entrepreneurial culture in Ireland. Key to achieving this is ensuring that, through our approach to education and  training  across  all  levels,  we  empower  our  workforce  with  the confidence  and  skills  set  necessary  so  that  each  individual  can be considered a potential entrepreneur. 

“The GEM Reports have shown Ireland to be one of the most entrepreneurial countries in the world so we are building on a strong foundation.  We must continue to work in strengthening this base, tackling obstacles such as the fear of failure and further embedding  a wider societal appreciation of the importance of entrepreneurship,” she added.

The Tánaiste said the findings and recommendations contained in this report would contribute to the work underway in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment on  the  development  of  a National Entrepreneurship Strategy, which the Government is due to publish in the New Year.