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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Article
Effects of Entrepreneurship Education on Students’ Entrepreneurial Intentions: A Case of Botswana
Author(s)
Patrick Ebong Ebewo, Robert Rugimbana
Richard Shambare
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DOI:10.17265/2328-2185/2017.04.002
Affiliation(s)
Tshwane University of Technology, Tshwane, South Africa
University of Venda, Venda, South Africa
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this research
was to assess the impact of entrepreneurship education
on university students’ intentions towards entrepreneurship. To test this relationship
and attempt to answer the research question “to what extent does University-level entrepreneurship education influence
students’ entrepreneurial intentions?” a conceptual model supported by the theory of Planned
Behaviour was adopted. Data were gathered from
343 final year students at the University of Botswana using a validated Entrepreneurship
Intention Questionnaire. The results provide evidence that all three immediate antecedents of entrepreneurial
intention; attitude towards entrepreneurship, subjective norm and perceived behavioural
control (perceived entrepreneurial abilities) directly influence entrepreneurial intention.
Participation
in entrepreneurship education was observed to positively influence students’ intention to become an entrepreneur by changing their
attitude towards entrepreneurship and increasing their entrepreneurial abilities.
The implication is that the university curriculum should be redesigned
in order to stimulate an environment that is conducive for developing positive entrepreneurial
attitudes and abilities. Based on the above, it
is recommended that (a) entrepreneurship education subjects be offered as core subjects
in the first and final years at the University of Botswana and students’ assessments should incorporate
linking projects with small firms, (b) the University of Botswana Business Clinic
should establish a venture accelerator programme by providing seed funding and an
entrepreneurship-mentorship programme. Policymakers
need to understand that government initiatives will affect business formations only
if these initiatives affect attitudes, entrepreneurial abilities, and subjective norms,
which could motivate young people to start a promising enterprise. The objective of the promotion of entrepreneurship policy
in Botswana should be to increase the number of individuals considering business
start-ups through more determined entrepreneurship education initiatives.
KEYWORDS
entrepreneurial intentions, entrepreneurial abilities, entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship education, university education, Botswana
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