Abstract:

University, since it was created, has faced different changes in its mission (Etzkowitz, 2003), evolving until getting an important paper in the socio-economic development. It has become an important agent for the generation of wealth, through the creation of new companies. This new concept of university is called the Entrepreneurial University.

In recent years, the Entrepreneurial University has been subject of study by several researchers (O'Shea et al., 2004, Guerrero et al., 2011). In fact, the Entrepreneurial University promotes economic and social development in its region is vital to cope with the decline in industrial activity caused by the economic crisis; however, does it really meet this objective? Are the universities positively influencing the socio-economic development of the region where they are located?

In order to deal with this situation, Mondragon University and University of Deusto (financed by the Basque Government) are developing a project called ONISEE. The main objective of the project is to obtain and validate a model for determining the fulfilment of Entrepreneurial University’s third mission; indeed, both the activities developed by the university and the results of academic entrepreneurship achieved by it contribute positively and meaningfully to the socio-economic development of the region. Therefore, the present article describes the theoretical part of this project, the socio-economic development model.

Keywords:

Entrepreneurial University, Entrepreneurial University’s results, Socio-economic development, University’s third mission, University-Industry Cooperation.