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An Assessment of graduate entrepreneurship Support – WIELKOPOLSKA A ND KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE, POLAND. Warsaw , Poland 13 March 2014. David Halabisky david.halabisky@oecd.org. Presentation structure. The Entrepreneurial University
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An Assessment of graduate entrepreneurship Support – WIELKOPOLSKA AND KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE, POLAND Warsaw, Poland 13 March 2014 David Halabisky david.halabisky@oecd.org
Presentation structure • The Entrepreneurial University • The OECD review of Wielkopolska and Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Poland • Objectives • Method • Key findings • Recommendations
The Entrepreneurial University • Promotes the development of entrepreneurial mind sets and behaviours among students: • Offers teaching to prepare students to act entrepreneurially • Supports business creation by students • 51% of young people (aged 15-24) desire to be self-employed within the next 5 years but only 34% have taken part in a course or activity about entrepreneurship (Flash Eurobarometer, 2013). • Acts as a flexible, responsive organisation that is entrepreneurial itself and contributes to local development: • Has an entrepreneurial culture, leadership and incentives • Supports knowledge exchange with local businesses and the community and commercialises university research • Supports internationalisation through mobility and education • Evaluates its progress
HEInnovate tool The Entrepreneurial University
Objectives of Case Study Review • Assess current practices in support for entrepreneurship in higher education in Wielkopolska/Kujawsko-Pomorskie, including: • Contents of entrepreneurship teaching and training programmes. • Practical business support offerings and linkages with external business development services and financial institutions. • Governance of entrepreneurship skills provision. • Develop recommendations and international learning models at different levels: • Actions for higher education institutions to improve entrepreneurship teaching and start-up support offerings. • Policy measures that can be promoted by governments and development agencies at national and regional levels.
Project method • One week study visit by international expert review team and OECD secretariat: • Poznań University of Economics • Adam Mickiewicz University • Poznań University of Technology • Kazimierz Wielki University • University of Technology and Life Science • Nicolas Copernicus University • Surveys of HEI leaders and students • Workshop with stakeholders to discuss findings and recommendations
Survey results: teaching methods used • A wide variety of teaching methods used but there is room to use more “active” learning experiences such as business competitions and student start-ups.
Survey results: start-up support services offered • Students have access to many support services.
Survey results: Collaboration in delivering start-up support • Universities work with many partners but entrepreneurs and alumni appear to be an under-exploited resource. • There are few partnerships with potential investors.
Student survey results: Areas for improvement • Access to finance is frequently identified as an area for improvement.
Key conclusions • Entrepreneurship education is growing in Poland but has yet to reach a broad base of students. • Passive teaching methods are used more frequently than active methods. • Many partners work with universities to support student start-up projects but students report difficulty accessing services. • The business community is an under-exploited resource for entrepreneurship education and start-up support.
Findings on strengths • Supportive policy environment: • Willingness to use EU Structural Funds to support entrepreneurship. • National Qualifications Framework for Higher Education covers entrepreneurship. • Universities are autonomous and can launch entrepreneurship initiatives. • HEIs benefit from local entrepreneurship strategies (e.g.City of Bydgoszcz’s seven-year strategy ‘Academic Entrepreneurship’) and events (e.g. Poznan Academic Entrepreneurship Days). • Well-developed entrepreneurship ecosystem around HEIs and external stakeholders are valuable members of the university community: • Arms-length organisations (e.g. InQbator) have developed rapidly and are using leading edge pedagogy (e.g. start-up projects, camping trips) and outreach (e.g. radio programmes, TV series). • Academic Incubators of Entrepreneurship provide a mechanism for mobilisingentrepreneurship activities across all HEIs.
Areas for improvement • Entrepreneurship is not yet integrated throughout the whole university environment and is not a visible and integrated part of HEI strategies. • Entrepreneurship is not viewed as an academic discipline that is on par with the natural sciences: • There were no Chairs or Professors in Entrepreneurship. • Entrepreneurship teaching methods are passive and entrepreneurship teaching and trainers do not receive training. • Few students take entrepreneurship beyond introductory modules within other areas of study: • Only Poznań University of Economics offers an (elective) entrepreneurship course which is taken by approximately 25% of students. • Entrepreneurship teaching was often not available for students at the second and third cycle levels. • Start-up support systems vary in quality and students would benefit from more co-ordination with off-campus support.
Using the ESF to improve support for entrepreneurship in HEIs • Increase interest in entrepreneurship among HEI leadership and staff: • Support leadership seminars to drive a change in mind-set of university leadership • Organise conferences for students to increase bottom-up support for entrepreneurship • Fund the implementation of HEI entrepreneurship strategies • Improve the quality of entrepreneurship teaching: • Provide training for entrepreneurship professors and university staff
Other possible actions • Legitimate entrepreneurship as an academic field: • Fund entrepreneurship research in Poland • Fund participation in international research projects • Create a national prize for entrepreneurship research • Create entrepreneurship Professors and Chairs • Re-think the tenure process • Leverage student organisations: • Fund student organisations, clubs and networks • Ensure that students are included in entrepreneurship events • Use the business community in entrepreneurship teaching: • Involve entrepreneurs in the development and delivery of content • Provide incentives for entrepreneurs to participate in projects and business competitions