January 16, 2008

Purdue entrepreneurship certificate program enrolls more than 1,000 undergrads

"We started with 40 students and a three-year goal of having 1,000 involved by spring 2008," said Nathalie Duval-Couetil, director of the certificate program and associate director of Discovery Park's Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, where the program is based. "Today our goal is to identify undergraduate students across disciplines who have a real hunger for starting businesses of their own some day."

Students complete 15 credits to earn the certificate. Similar to a minor, the program is designed to begin in a student's freshman or sophomore year and can be completed in approximately four semesters. It has attracted students from every school and college, including technology, management, science, engineering, consumer and family sciences and liberal arts.

"Undergraduate entrepreneurship programs have been historically offered primarily to management students, but at Purdue it's open to anyone who has the vision to turn an idea into a business," said Alan H. Rebar, executive director of Discovery Park. "It fits beautifully within the Discovery Park model of interdisciplinary research and enterprise and allows students to grow and seize opportunities within their own particular field of study."

Rebar said the ability to deliver entrepreneurship education across disciplines is one of the primary reasons the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship has been designated as one of the Kauffman Campuses Initiatives by the Kauffman Foundation. The group provides funding to schools throughout the country in order to enable students to access entrepreneurial training.

"Purdue's program is unique in that we are not asking students to give up an interest in science or liberal arts to study entrepreneurship," Duval-Couetil said. "Our goal is to add power to students' careers, whatever their field, by sensitizing them to market opportunities and providing them with the business, leadership and communication skills they need to turn ideas into viable business ventures."

Upon completion of two foundation courses, students have the choice among classes such as business writing for entrepreneurs or new product development and entrepreneurial opportunities in areas such as energy and biotechnology.

To complete the program, students take the final, or capstone, class or do an internship with a start-up company, which usually involves significant interaction with practicing entrepreneurs. Duval-Couetil said the goal of these experiences is to get students to apply the principles they've learned in class and to get them thinking about opportunities beyond campus.

Michelle Scheidt, a senior in biomedical engineering from West Lafayette, said she has received several job offers that she might not have gotten without the entrepreneurship certificate.

"The certificate program has broadened my future career opportunities," Scheidt said. "This past summer, I was able to obtain a fabulous marketing internship working for a small start-up company that specializes in peripheral nerve regeneration. Thus, my internship culminated my biomedical, engineering, management and entrepreneurship interests all into one neat experience."

The curriculum teaches theory and practice related to starting and running new business ventures, but also aims to make students aware of resources at Purdue, Duval-Couetil said.  

"At Purdue, we are very fortunate to have a wealth of resources for entrepreneurs, including management and technical expertise and leading business incubation services through Purdue Extension and Purdue Research Park," she said.  "The certificate program is an excellent way to expose students to all the resources Purdue provides."

Future plans include a more international focus and an examination of women's entrepreneurial roles.

"The world is moving so fast," Duval-Couetil said. "We want to make entrepreneurial skills accessible to students in all fields and to help them think globally."

Writer: Maggie Morris, (765) 494-2432, maggiemorris@purdue.edu

Sources:  Alan Rebar, (765) 496-6625, rebar@purdue.edu

Nathalie Duval-Couetil, (765) 494-7068, natduval@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

Note to Journalists: Students who are enrolled or have completed the certificate may be available for interview. Contact Nathalie Duval-Couetil, (765) 494-7068, natduval@purdue.edu

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