Entrepreneurship Education Initiative

Phase 1: Establishing Potential

How do we assist students in deciding if they have the potential to be successful entrepreneurial thinkers and if this program is right for them? We begin by demonstrating to students the importance of understanding who they are, and by assisting students to gain self-awareness through the use of personality profiles and entrepreneurial style indicators. The self-awareness process is extensive and continues throughout life as students grow and experience new situations. It is important for students to understand their strengths and weaknesses and to be comfortable with themselves before they can ever expect to be successful as an entrepreneur. Having a sense of self-awareness guides actions and decisions throughout the entrepreneurship process.

During this phase of the process, students learn the importance of establishing goals and how to map out a process to achieve those goals. Students are expected to start the entrepreneurship curriculum during their sophomore or junior year at NC State. Students at this stage of college have had time to begin growing and maturing through life experiences. Students are able to use the insights gained during the self-awareness process to further look inside themselves to see if entrepreneurship is right for them. This individual introspection acts as a self-selecting tool to ensure that students who continue in the process are doing so in their best interest.