Promoting entrepreneurship education in doctoral programs: the INVENTHEI’s Training for Innovation Driven Research program and its assessment proposal.

Abstract

Education can be a central tool for stimulating entrepreneurship, establishing positive links between entrepreneurship education (EE), entrepreneurship performance and development of innovative ideas. Recognizing the pivotal role of doctoral programs within the education system, it becomes crucial for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to incorporate entrepreneurship education (EE) into these programs. Training for Innovation Driven Research program has been designed within the INVENTHEI project, and it is aimed to Ph.D. students in early stages of their research trajectories. The design thinking methodology underpins the practical approach of learning-by-doing. Each session focusses on a specific design thinking phase to train at least one of the six competences selected from the EntreComp framework: spotting opportunities, creativity, vision, mobilising others, planning and management, and learning through experience. In order to examinate how the training is functioning regarding its goals or objectives, including whether program activities have been successfully designed and implemented, and if it has effects in the target population, various tools have been designed. These tools include observation checklists for continuous evaluation, rubrics to identify if the objectifiable products meet the basic requirements, and surveys with structured questionnaires to evaluate different aspects.