Entrepreneurial education is very essential and necessary for human capital development and economic empowerment. Offering entrepreneurship related courses in the university will help to equip the young ones with the needed skills and knowledge to succeed in workplace or in business when they are done with schooling.
The importance of offering entrepreneurship courses in tertiary institution cannot be over emphasized but bellow are some of the reasons:
Development of new skills
Entrepreneurship studies enable the students acquire most invaluable skills such as confidence , leadership, originality, risk-taking orientation and much more.
Prepare for self reliance/self employment
Offering entrepreneurship education in tertiary institutions prepares you to be self reliant after school. In today’s world, jobs are no longer guaranteed for young graduates. It is no longer “go to school, study hard, get good grades, and get a good job.” Unemployment and underemployment are on the rise by the day. The future of work is being threatened by technology especially the agentic Artificial Intelligence and robotics. According to World Economic Forum’s Future of Job Survey, by 2055, half of today’s work done by humans could be done by AI and robotics thereby cutting down future industrial workforce. Presently, the introduction of Information Technology in the financial sector has reduced the number of human tellers in the sector. Robots now handle customer care , receptionist, logistics jobs. Generative and agentic AI tools are taking over programmers, designers, writers and editors’ jobs. This creates new roles and challenges for human workforce. Graduates are now faced with challenges of self employment.
To have knowledge of business aspect of every discipline
Every discipline has business aspect, and you need to learn the business aspect of your discipline. Entrepreneurship education will empower a musician to understand the business aspect of music, which will help him excel in his music career. Music is a profession, it is not just about making good sounds, there is business aspect of it for a career musician to be successful. Music business involves management, administration, marketing, accounting. So, a musician needs to be musicpreneur (music entrepreneur), likewise every other discipline. As an employee, you need entrepreneurship skills to run an organization’s business, which are same skills you will deploy when you start your own business.
Versatility
Acquiring entrepreneurship education broadens the knowledge and skills of students thereby making them versatile. Don’t limit yourself to what you are studying in the university. Don’t say because you’re studying accounting, you must be an accountant. Because you’re studying nursing, you must work in the hospital. As a doctor, you need entrepreneurship education to run your own hospital.
Critical and in-depth knowledge produces stability
A doctor is confident until he doesn’t know what to do. It had been established that one of the major reasons businesses fail is management incompetence. Incompetence on the part of the owners and their employees. It’s therefore important to inculcate the managerial skills right from schools. Whether you’re going to set up your own business or work for another in the private or public sectors, you need to have entrepreneurial skills. One of the inefficiencies in the public sector especially in Nigeria and Africa, is lack of entrepreneurial competence on the part of those who run public affairs. They lack the skills needed to run government enterprises profitably for the good of all. Many government establishments, assets are moribund today as a result of managerial incompetence and bad governance.
Become job creators instead of job seekers
Offering entrepreneurship courses in schools can equip students with the skills and mindset necessary to becoming job creators rather than job seekers in so many ways. Students will be able to learn how to identify opportunities, generate innovative ideas, and validate their feasibility through market research and testing. Entrepreneurship courses usually cover how to draft business plan and proposals, involving market analysis, competitive strategy, and financial projections.
Risk management is one other aspect of business management that entrepreneurship courses cover. Entrepreneurs are taught how to assess and manage risks, helping them to navigate uncertainties and make informed decisions.
Students learn about different sources of funding and options, and resources available for starting a business, including venture capital, crowdfunding, and grants.
Entrepreneurship courses provide opportunities to connect with mentors , industry experts, and other entrepreneurs, which can lead to valuable advice and potential partnerships.
Entrepreneurship courses teach students practical skills such as marketing, sales, finance, and operations, which are essential for running a successful business.
Students develop an entrepreneurial mindset, including resilience and adaptability, which are crucial for overcoming challenges and persisting in the face of obstacles.
Entrepreneurship courses can empower students to create their own job opportunities and contribute to the economy as innovators and leaders