WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

THE CAREER TRAJECTORY OF

ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION ALUMNI

KAREN WILLIAMS MIDDLETON CHALMERS SCHOOL OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP

KAREN.WILLIAMS@CHALMERS.SE DIVISION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP & STRATEGY
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
What is the main objective of
entrepreneurship education?

(i.e. what should students be prepared to do at the end of such an education)

 This is a message we typically get (give):
Start-ups from Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship
20+ years – 83 ventures – 73% survival rate

Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship’s ventures account for 30% of incubated tech venture revenue in Sweden,
making it the most successful startup environment in Sweden. All Chalmers ventures account for 40%.
(Lundqvist, 2014)
 Or this one….

Outcomes: New entrepreneurs and new ventures (with new solutions)

Otto Maria Isabella Annelie and Mikael

Modular wind Resuscitation for Sustainable laundry Drill core scanner

power towers newborns solutions and analysis
 Does Entrepreneurship Education Payoff?

Chapter 3: Elert & Rahm

• Despite 100+ academic studies of
entrepreneurship education, little attention to
effect* relative to cost of education
• Seems difficult and expensive to train
entrepreneurs
• Design of the education seems to determine
cost-effectiveness

https://entreprenorskapsforum.se/2019/11/19/38921/

* What effect is expected – entrepreneurs, start-ups, …?

Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship
• 1997: Started with TECH ‘track’ – venture creation
• 2001: Created a specific incubator to partner with the school
th nd
Encubator – ranked 8 globally in 2014 before becoming part of Chalmers Ventures – ranked 2
th
in Europe and 12 globally in 2019
• 2003: Added a new track (ICM) – intellectual capital management
• 2006: Added a new track (BIO) – venture creation
• 2015: Added a new track (CORP) – intrapreneurship/corporate entrepreneurship

CORP CORP
Alumni BIO 5%
BIO
5% Survey
14%
distribution 19% distribution
by track by track

TECH
56% ICM
ICM TECH
13%
25% 63%
 26% are self-employed.

33% are engaged in start-up activity (i.e. 7% hybrids).

60% are employed in the corporate or public sector.

49% have not been active in a start-up since graduation.

10% do not engage in entrepreneurial activities in their occupation.

-How does this match with our assumptions/expectations?

This and following data from preliminary findings based on 2018 Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship alumni survey (53% response rate)
Occupational status (%)
0,8 2,7 1,5 0,4
1,5

6,8

Start-up activity = 32,6 25,8

60,6

Employed (working for another employer) Self-Employed

Combining employment and self-employment (hybrid) Studying (excluding PhD)
PhD education Parental leave
Currently searching for job Other
 Occupational preference, %
To what extent would you prefer running your own business or being employed by someone?
31,6

22,5
• 42% are actively saving

16,9
money to invest in a

13,9
business

• 21% are actively trying

to start a business

6,5

4,8

3,9
I WOULD 2 3 INDIFFERENT 5 6 I WOULD
PREFER TO RUN PREFER TO BE
MY OWN EMPLOYED
BUSINESS

62% are more inclined towards self-employment 15% are more inclined towards employment
Start-up activity after graduation

%
I have not started up any new businesses since graduating
from the program 49

I have started up one new business, which I have operated

and managed since it was founded 27

I have started up several businesses, where I have operated

and managed them one at a time 13

I have simultaneously operated and managed two or more

businesses at the same time 11
Entrepreneurship activities in employment (%)

Are you actively involved in or leading idea development for new business activity?
Are you actively involved in or leading preparation and implementation of a new business activity?

37,9
29,1

28,6

23,1
22,5

19,8

12,6

12,1
7,1

7,1
YES, THIS IS MY MAIN YES, TO A YES, TO SOME EXTENT YES, ONLY TO A VERY NO
RESPONSIBILITY CONSIDERABLE LITTLE EXTENT
DEGREE

The majority of the alumni who are full or part-time

employed, have a leading role in practicing
entrepreneurship.
What might these findings indicate?

• We are primed to think about entrepreneurship education delivering start-ups

and entrepreneurs rather than entrepreneurial activity and entrepreneurially
competent individuals
• Entrepreneurial competence is a broadly sought after competence, but it is not
fully recognized where this competence is gained and how it is qualified
• There are potentially more similarities than differences between being
entrepreneurial and being an entrepreneur
• One can have an entrepreneurial career and entrepreneurial identity without
being an entrepreneur
 What’s next?

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY

 Investigating potential treatment effect
Pre Masters Education Post
Entrepreneurship Education
emphasizing learning through
Previous Start-up Experience venture creation (tech univ., Occupational Status
surrogacy model)
Entrepreneurial ’Pedigree’ Work/Life Balance
Control 1: Entrepreneurship
Education not emphasizing venture
Entrepreneurial Activity
Educational Background creation (tech univ., same
educational design)
Control 2: Entrepreneurship
Start-Up Activity
Entrepreneurial Intention education (venture creation) tech
univ. but not surrogacy model Entrepreneurial Identity
Standard of Living Control 3: Entrepreneurship
education (venture creation) Standard of Living
business school, not surrogacy model
Control 4: Engineering Masters
Education
Entrepreneurial community (Family & Friends) %

HAVE ANY OF YOUR RELATIVES OR CLOSE

FRIENDS STARTED A BUSINESS?

42,5

31,0
12,0

7,0
6,5

1,0
NO PARENTS SIBLINGS GRANDPARENTS CLOSE FRIENDS I DON'T KNOW
Lapoint
Travels
Ongoing research through…
• Martin Stockhaus, doctorand
div. E&S

• EPAS project – in collaboration

with venture creation programs
(VCPs) at Lund and NTNU

• Masters thesis work of current

students, ex. Johanna & Nico

• Chalmers School of
Entrepreneurship ‘Clinical Lab’
together with key collaborators
(ex. Chalmers Ventures,
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
Innovationskontor, Chalmers
Alumni association, etc.)

Thank you.