Table 3 Summary of themes
Factor | Key themes |
|---|---|
Entrepreneurial self-efficacy | Confidence in communication and public speaking skills |
Lack of confidence in regard to business-related skills and perceiving entrepreneurship to be intimidating | |
Entrepreneurial intent | The intent to start a company or be self-employed |
The intent to solve problems in the world | |
Goal | Perceived value of EEPs in meeting one’s goal of personal development and making a lot of money |
Attitude | Perceived EEPs as valuable (attitude) for gaining professional skills and business knowledge |
Subjective norm | Subjective norm or approval of the value of participation in EEPs came from peers/friends and family |
Opportunities and challenges | Course scheduling conflicts to meeting degree requirements |
Lack of technology-oriented entrepreneurship curriculum | |
Mostly positive feedback for active learning instruction with few negatives for pitch competitions | |
Information and resources | Learned about EEPs from participation in student organizations and student events |
Lack of academic advising on different entrepreneurship courses | |
Lack of information about the purpose and benefits of different entrepreneurship programs | |
Social capital | Exposure to entrepreneurship community and access to social capital |
Academic transitions | Introducing EEPs early allows students to tailor their curriculum accordingly and meet entrepreneurial goals without postponing graduation |
Later years better suited because students are making post-graduation career decisions and have acquired sufficient engineering knowledge. In early years, students are still adjusting to college and engaged in completion of required engineering courses | |
Participation in entrepreneurship programs | Past experiences exposed students to entrepreneurship and helped them learn more about it |
Past experiences positively shaped students’ perception of EEPs |