The status of entrepreneurship education in Jordanian universities

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the developmental level of entrepreneurship education within the context of Jordanian higher education. The level of development in such education is investigated based on two areas: the educational courses and programs themselves and the formal structures within which they are embedded. Design/methodology/approach The quantitative approach is based on a survey scan of all 29 Jordanian universities, including their course plans, educational programs, departments and centers. A list of entrepreneurship centers, programs and course subjects is provided and analyzed. Findings The main findings of study are: in Jordan, entrepreneurship education is still at an early stage of development, and its offerings are limited to a few courses covering some introductory subjects in small business and entrepreneurship courses. Of the Jordanian universities, one university offers a major educational graduate program in entrepreneurship and 27.5 percent have centers for innovation and entrepreneurship, but lack any entrepreneurship departments. Entrepreneurship education is new in Jordan: the first provided course was a small business management; the first center was established in 2004 and later in 2012, it offered the first educational programs in entrepreneurship. Research implications This paper assists all stakeholders in higher education to build an understanding of the nature of entrepreneurship education in Jordan and supports the design of appropriate strategies for encouraging entrepreneurial subjects to be incorporated into the country’s universities educational programs. Originality/value The value of this study stems from its aim to provide an overview of the status of entrepreneurship education in Jordanian universities. It also makes a contribution to knowledge as the first nationwide study in this context.

Entrepreneurship research in the Middle East and North Africa: trends, challenges, and sustainability issues

“…Entrepreneurial education would encourage an entrepreneurial mindset amongst students and support new ventures from within the student body. More recent evidence from Alakaleek (2019) reflects that the present academic system may not assist in developing entrepreneurship, as universities focus on theoretical rather than practical or experiential education.…”

Lean thinking and higher education management: revaluing the business school programme management

“…The literature review showed that the graduates of business schools in Jordan lack the skills and capabilities needed for successful employment. Despite many attempts to improve the quality of educational output, it is noticeable that the graduates of business schools in Jordan experience deficiencies in their employability capabilities and skills (Badran, 2014;Alakaleek, 2019), which is mainly due to a lack of focus on employability in the curriculum design (Assaad et al, 2018).…”

“…Among these challenges is the situation where graduates lack the skills and capabilities that are needed for successful employment (Zineldin et al, 2011;Groh et al, 2016). For example, empirical studies (Masoud, 2017;Alakaleek, 2019) have reported a decline in the level of employment of business school students and a shortage in the capabilities and skills graduates need to be considered employable, and employers continue to report that graduates are not ready for the world of work (Altarawneh, 2016). This is mainly due to the lack of focus on employability in the curriculum design (Groh et al, 2016;Assaad et al, 2018;Waterbury, 2019).…”

“…The national and regional demand for Jordanian graduates, especially those from business schools, has decreased significantly due to the significant mismatch between the needs of the labour market and the output of the higher education system in Jordan (Assaad et al, 2018). Thus, there are increasing calls for business schools in Jordan to enhance graduates' employability (Badran, 2014;Barsoum;Mryyan, 2014;Assaad et al, 2018;Alakaleek, 2019;Waterbury, 2019).…”

Entrepreneurship education: systematic literature review and future research directions

“…An extensive body of research was conducted in entrepreneurship education: entrepreneurship education research (Yatu et al, 2018); entrepreneurship's influence on other disciplines (Canziani and Welsh, 2019); students' entrepreneurship-education mind-set (Cui et al, 2019); entrepreneurship education and student intention (K€ uttim et al, 2014); entrepreneurship education and job creation (Matlay and Owusu-Mintah, 2014); status of entrepreneurship education (Alakaleek, 2019).…”