Generation "E" equals entrepreneurship
by Emily McGowan & Natalie Burke, Outpost Contributors
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Gen X embraces self-reliance |
Managerial Sciences Professor R.C. Barns teaches small business management and entreprenuership here at the University of Nevada, Reno. Small business management is a course designed to teach skills necessary for entering into an existing firm.
Entreprenuership, on the other hand, teaches how to start your own business. The course consists of between 14 and 18 students who are placed into teams where they learn new business concepts and design a full business plan.
Professor Barnes hopes within the next couple of years a grant will be given to fund a more extensive entreprenuerial program here at the university. Limited access to funding is responsible for the entreprenuership course being offered to seniors within the school of business only, however, an interest is being shown from outsiders as well.
"Entreprenuership is a growing interest among college students across the country," Barnes said. "We need to give our students the options and opportunities they deserve."
The changing climate in U.S. businesses is one reason for an increased interest in entrepreneurial courses among Generation X students. "The future in corporate America doesn't hold much promise for this generation and entrepreneurship means economic independence," said Steven Rogers, a professor at Northwestern University.
Motivated by the desire for autonomy, greater job security and a larger share of the profits, Generation X may have finally found its true calling-entrepreneurship. GenXer's are making entrepreneurship a key career choice; a primary goal, not an afterthought.
According to a Washington Post article, over the past ten years the number of U.S. graduate and undergraduate programs offering courses in entrepreneurship have quadrupled from about 150 to 600. Adapting to the changes within society and Generation X, these institutions are offering their students something more.
According to the Young Entrepreneurs' Association, most of the growth has been seen in high-tech business. Therefore, the majority of curriculum stems from business, technology, marketing and communication.
College graduates are finding that high-paying, entry-level positions aren't as readily available as they had been led to believe. A 1995 survey by Babson College Professor Paul Reynolds found that 10 percent of Americans between the ages of 25 and 34 were actively involved in creating a start-up company, a rate about three times as high as any other age group.
copyright 6/1/97 Nevada Outpost
http://www.jour.unr.edu/outpost
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