Abstract:

The major consequence of the economic crisis is unemployment, the phenomenon labelling the relation between demand and supply on the labour market. But specifically, nowadays, we acknowledge the lack of employability to which academic institutions shall respond as they offer one of the largest environments for skills and abilities development so as to allow people to be employed. Under such circumstances, entrepreneurship and financial-aid programmes offer students and postgraduates the opportunity of being self-employed. Thus, academic institutions put the basis of knowledge not only of future employees, but also of future entrepreneurs.

In this respect, the aim of this paper is, on one hand, to analyse what academic institutions strategically design as curricula so as to encourage and support entrepreneurship, and, on the other hand, to identify students’ and postgraduates’ approach to entrepreneurship, both within their studies and after having graduated.

The research herein presented focuses on two sample populations, one consisting of the youth who are currently students matriculated within universities for Bachelor and Master study programmes and one formed by postgraduates who started working with a company or created their own business. The research general aim is to identify the differences between the two samples with regard to the academic entrepreneurship-oriented curriculum design, the entrepreneurial context offered by academic institutions and their entrepreneurial outcomes.

In this respect, the results generated according to the two samples show the core values of students’ and postgraduates’ entrepreneurship, of which we identified: creativity and innovation, talent and devotion, vocational training and further education, courage and direct action, money and fortune. Thus, based on the analysis of these factors, academic institutions should encourage and support young entrepreneurs’ networking through the creation of virtual communities to discuss business opportunities, strategic approaches, project management, business macro-economic and microeconomic risks and all the issues they face with. Academic staff’s role shall be to assist and provide them with business consultancy whereas the entire business environment shall participate with mentorship, counselling and examples of good practices.

Keywords:

Academic institutions, curriculum design, entrepreneurship, virtual networking, economic crisis, quantitative research.