Educational Institutes As Incubation Centre For Young Entrepreneurs

In schools and universities, aspiring entrepreneurs are relying on technological advancement to launch their own businesses. Educational institutes can act as incubators for young entrepreneurs across the country. 

Comparing the current entrepreneurial environment with previous decades, Prof Lt General RK Anand, Director General, MRIIRS, said, "Two to three decades ago, the environment in the universities was strictly based on the syllabi and used to revolve within the four walls of the classroom."

He was speaking at BW Education Future of Management Conclave 2023, hosted by BW Businessworld on Thursday in New Delhi.

There is a dramatic shift that has taken place; not just universities but governments and the industries across different verticals are promoting the startup culture. With changing industry standards, institutes must bring students closer to the industry's future demands. There is integration and conversion taking place between the industry and demand. These conversions are pulling the ecosystem together and motivating all stakeholders to think and innovate. 

Dr Pooja Jain, Director, Jagan Institute of Management Studies, has observed a drastic change in the risk appetite of the youngsters. "We have supported small startups run by students; we have aligned with two industrial areas that are in the vicinity of our campus, and we send our students to the SMEs so that they can support them in running their businesses and learn from them," she said. 

Universities across US and Europe are a few steps ahead when it comes to creating an environment to promote and incubate startups. They provide students with industry exposure and practical experience to make them aware of the right set of skills they will be required to have for growth in the near future.

"One of the things that universities abroad have done is that they have not looked at entrepreneurship as one subject, rather they have embedded entrepreneurship throughout the curriculum of the business schools," said Dr Nihar Amoncar, Chairperson -PGDM ExP Program, Faculty Strategy and Innovation, IMT Ghaziabad.

Amoncar, further elaborating on entrepreneurship, added that enterpriseship is different from entrepreneurship. Enterprise is about having an idea and making it happen. Entrepreneurship is about scaling it up and creating social, cultural and economic value for society. We must better assist and shape students' ideas, provide them with mentor teams and structured funding and improve their marketing strategies.

Today, India has the world's third-largest ecosystem for startups, with 56 diverse sectors represented. There are numerous business opportunities for young entrepreneurs and the increasing digitisation as only expanded the horizon. In addition to this, the government of India has rolled out several schemes to, which has motivated young population of the country to pursue entrepreneurship as a stable career option.