Entrepreneurship in Engineering Schools
Entrepreneurship has seen a significant growth in recent years as a topic taught within engineering curricula. This growth is due in part to technology continuing to drive innovation and the economy (Kauffman Panel on Entrepreneurship Curriculum in Higher Education, 2008). Today’s engineers now need to be entrepreneurial in their thinking and actions to effectively contribute to the advancement of technological innovations. Engineering entrepreneurship not only shares the same origins of the more traditional venture creation-focused entrepreneurship but also represents a new discipline influenced by the practices of engineering and education. Our understanding of what exactly defines engineering entrepreneurship is still evolving because theory and research lags behind the significant growth of practice. Theoretical frameworks, research, and reviews of engineering entrepreneurship are needed to advance the understanding of this emerging discipline (Aileen).
Engineering Entrepreneur is one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risk of an engineering (or technology) business or enterprise.
Entrepreneurship Development Efforts in engineering schools
Columbia Engineering
- The Columbia Makerspace
A place for all Columbia-affiliated faculty, staff, post-docs, and students to develop their ideas into tangible items using it as a resource for projects, hobbies, building prototypes, or just trying something new.
- The Res. Inc. Program
A platform for undergraduate students to build and launch companies.
- Design Studio
Using a set of methodologies, called “human-centered design”, we teach students, alumni, and faculty an agile approach to gaining critical customer insights and integrating them into their products, services, and businesses.
- Harlem Biospace
A new biotech incubator and the first of its kind in New York City to offer affordable shared wet-lab space for new ventures
- Columbia Startup Lab
- Columbia Venture Competition
- Minor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation (academic)
Penn State University School of Engineering
- Engineering entrepreneurship (E-SHIP) program (academic)
Brown University School of Engineering
- Program in Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship (academic)
- Master's in Technology Leadership (academic)
Cornell University School of Engineering
- Minor in Entrepreneurship (academic)
- Innovation Competition
- eHub
An open, flexible, and dynamic collaboration and coworking space fostering entrepreneurship for the entire Cornell community
- eLab
Dedicated to accelerating the top Cornell University startups
NYU Tandon School of Engineering
- Minor in Engineering Innovation (academic)
- InnoVention Student Competition
- NYU Tandon Made Challenge
- Vertically Integrated Projects Program
- NYU Tandon MakerSpace
- The Future Labs
Comparison between entrepreneurship developments within different engineering schools
All engineering schools listed above mentioned their focus on engineering entrepreneurship. All of them set up minors or programs towards engineering innovation or engineering entrepreneurship. Some of them hold innovation or venture competitions for students, and a coworking space fostering entrepreneurship. For those only listed academic entrepreneurship programs, they don't have initiatives or programs specifically designed for engineering schools. We can find that different schools put divergent efforts in entrepreneurship developments. Although the sample is quite small. I would say that Tandon is one of the schools that has put the most effort and the most breadth into it.
Conclusion
When it comes to innovation in engineering, it’s never been more critical. You’d be mistaken for thinking engineering is all about working with a rational and logical process with no room for creativity, when in fact engineering and innovation go hand in hand.
Innovation is a great influence on the growth and survival of today’s engineering world, which is why it’s important higher education institutions are committed to the teaching of innovation and entrepreneurship.