The
University Senate of Michigan Technological University
Proposal
19-13
(Voting
Units: Academic)
Proposal for a Spin-Off from “B.S. in Management” to
a “B.S. in Management with a Concentration in Entrepreneurship”
1.
Program
Description
The proposed “B.S. in Management with a
Concentration in Entrepreneurship” is designed by the School of Business and
Economics (SBE) to provide students with the experience and confidence to
create a new business or induce and manage technology innovations or play a strong
role in innovative/entrepreneurial organizations. The proposed Concentration in
Entrepreneurship focuses on the creation of social and economic value by
developing the unique capabilities of idea generation, opportunity recognition,
resource acquisition, technology commercialization, and entrepreneurial
management. Entrepreneurship students will learn to shape entrepreneurial
opportunities, assess financial feasibility, and develop business models in
addition to writing business plans. Given the strong science and engineering
emphasis of Michigan Technological University, the concentration also provides customized
paths for students wishing to develop and commercialize new technologies and
patents within the entrepreneurial settings.
2.
Rationale
Overview
Major
rationales behind this proposal are presented below:
1. It has been widely agreed that
entrepreneurship is important to higher education in the United States[1].
It has been identified as a key element in undergraduate education. The
Kauffman Foundation outlines four critical reasons behind its importance: (a) entrepreneurship
is critical to understanding and succeeding in the contemporary global economy;
(b) it is already an expanding area of American college learning; (c) it is
becoming a basic part of what universities themselves do; and (d) it meets many
of the goals of a quality American undergraduate education.
2. There
is a growing interest in entrepreneurship courses among undergraduate students
at Michigan Tech. Over the last three years, student enrollment in the entrepreneurship
courses has increased. We have observed greater participation in the Elevator
Pitch and Business Plan Competitions hosted by the School of Business and
Economics. Students have also shown active participation in the New Venture
Competition organized jointly by the Central Michigan University and Michigan
Technological University. This observed growing interest among students could
be sustained by offering an official program in entrepreneurship – the proposed
concentration.
3. The
strong emphasis of Science and Technology at Michigan Tech offers a great
potential to develop unique entrepreneurship courses and programs around new
technologies and patents emerging out of the MTU Michigan Tech campus. In
this regard, the Business Development Experience course (listed as BUS 4991 and
BUS 4992) – being offered at the School of Business and Economics since 2010
and now proposed as a required course for the concentration in entrepreneurship
- provides experiential learning opportunities wherein senior year students
enrolled in the School of Business and Economics work towards identifying the
commercial viability of real-life projects that are undertaken as either senior
design engineering or Enterprise related projects. This arrangement continues
to strengthen links between the business school and engineering departments on
campus. In addition, entities such as the MTEC SmartZone,
the Innovation and Industry Engagement Office at Michigan Tech and the Advanced
Technology Development Center have also committed to provide avenues of engaging
undergraduate students in developing business models, business plans and technology-commercialization
plans, thereby offering a real entrepreneurial environment for our students.
4. Possessing
entrepreneurial skills will enhance job opportunities for Michigan Tech
graduates.
5. There are currently two faculty members that
hold endowed positions in entrepreneurship and innovation in the School of
Business and Economics. Dr. Saurav Pathak, the Rick and Jo Berquist
Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, joined MTU Michigan Tech in the fall of 2011. Dr. Tang Wang, the
Charles C. and John G. Gates Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship and
Innovation, joined MTU Michigan Tech in
the fall of 2012. Both professors currently teach entrepreneurship related courses
that are either elective for Management majors and/or special topics in
management. Their expertise in the area of entrepreneurship is valuable
resources that would facilitate and sustain the implementation and the delivery
of the proposed concentration.
Link to
Strategic Plan
The proposed concentration will support
Michigan Tech’s efforts to achieve its Strategic Plan by “Delivering a
distinctive and rigorous discovery-based learning experience grounded in
science, engineering, technology, sustainability, the business of innovation,…” (Michigan Tech Strategic Plan, http://www.mtu.edu/stratplan/). Additionally, this proposed concentration
supports the School of Business and Economics by fulfilling its mission to “…
integrate[s] the University's technological prominence with experience-based
learning to develop leaders in global business and innovation …” (School of
Business and Economics Mission, http://www.mtu.edu/business/school/dean/mission-values/). Management
majors with a Concentration in Entrepreneurship are in demand in the technology
startups, high-growth businesses, venture capital, and non-for-profit
organizations.
What Is Entrepreneurship?
Entrepreneurship
is one of the central drivers of our economy and students understand that[2]. Students
no longer believe they will take a job with a large corporation and expect that
they will spend their careers in one place. Students graduating out of this
concentration will have a wider range of interdisciplinary skills providing flexibility
and preparation for the future. Evidence shows some will choose to “take the
plunge” immediately after a degree in entrepreneurship or after having worked a
regular job for a few years. Entrepreneurship is one such skill that allows
them to do so and studies show that entrepreneurship can actually be taught[3].
Entrepreneurship
students are familiar with opportunity recognition – that would certainly be
essential for personal growth in any corporate sector as well. A formal degree
in entrepreneurship is especially beneficial when students are hired by
companies started by innovators themselves, such as Google, Facebook,
Microsoft, Apple, etc.
More
than 2,000 college and universities in the United States, about two-thirds of
the total, offer a course in entrepreneurship[4]. A
smaller but growing number have entire sequences leading to an undergraduate
minor or a master's in entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneurship is certainly one path for individuals beginning
their careers or looking for a change. Entrepreneurs can focus on opportunity
assessment, technology commercialization, new product development, and venture
capital financing. There are countless opportunities for a bright, ambitious
individual to fit into the entrepreneurial setting. Students out of this
concentration would be one step closer to do exactly so.
Concentration Differentiator:
The
proposed concentration would:
a.
Create
awareness about the possibility of starting one’s own business and be
independent,
b.
Provide
adequate knowledge and experience to students to realize (a),
c.
Provide
students with real-life business
development experience by allowing them to work closely with the idea of
commercializing:
i.
Senior
design engineering projects
ii.
Enterprise
projects
iii.
Intellectual
properties out of the Technology Transfer Office at MTU Michigan Tech
iv.
Business
opportunities incubated at the SmartZone
d.
Encourage
and provide experiences such as the Bob
Mark Elevator Pitch Competition, New Venture Competition, Silicon Valley trip,
etc.
e.
Combine
content based learning with experiential learning.
Notable
Information
·
The
student advisor will need to more carefully classify students by Concentrations
in the B.S. in Management. Communication to incoming students will ensure they
are placed in the correct category from their initial enrollment.
·
Dr.
Saurav Pathak met with Mr. James
Turnquist, Director of Career Services, regarding the
demand for graduates majoring in the B.S. in Management with a Concentration in
Entrepreneurship. Turnquist highlighted that the
proposed concentration aligns well with the intentions of students that come to
his office and express their aspirations to start their own businesses but seem
lost as to how to do so. He also mentioned that the SBE should also target its alumni
base. He receives inquiries from alumni regarding the possibilities of entrepreneurial
courses on campus and/or online.
·
We are collaborating with the Jim Turnquist, Director of Career Services, to ensure the
designed curriculum meets the needs of future employers and students interested
in entrepreneurship.
3.
Related Programs
a.
Northern
Michigan University: College of Business, offers as major as well as minor (http://www.nmu.edu/business/node/59).
b.
Michigan
State University – Broad College of Business offers a specialization (http://uas.broad.msu.edu/academics/specializations/entrepreneurship-specialization/)
c.
University
of Michigan – Ross
School of Business, offers what it calls “Program in Entrepreneurship – a
nine-credit specialized study in entrepreneurship (http://cfe.umich.edu/program-entrepreneurship).
They also offer a 36-credit hour Masters in entrepreneurship (http://cfe.umich.edu/academics) and a
15-credit hour Certificate of Advanced Studies in Engineering (CASE) in
Entrepreneurship (http://cfe.umich.edu/case).
d.
Central
Michigan University: Offered as a Major in Entrepreneurship: (http://www.cmich.edu/academics/business_admin/entrepreneurship/Pages/Entrepreneur_Major.aspx)
e.
Wayne
State University: Offered as an Engineering Entrepreneur Certificate Program in
the College of Engineering (http://engineering.wayne.edu/edge/academics/edge-certificate.php)
f.
Ferris
State University: Offered as Small Business and Entrepreneurship Minor (http://catalog.ferris.edu/programs/531/)
g.
Kettering
University: Offered as Innovation and Entrepreneurship Minor (http://wwwx.kettering.edu/futurestudents/undergraduate/innovationminor_curriculum.jsp)
The required courses for BS in
Management with a concentration in entrepreneurship align with those of other
universities. The opportunities to offer elective courses are dictated by
resources.
4.
Projected
Enrollment
There are currently 69 students enrolled
in the B.S. in Management major. Enrollments in the proposed concentration are
expected to be positively linked to the enrollments in the Management major.
The course titled “Entrepreneurship” (MGT
3800) is currently being offered as an elective for all majors in the School of
Business and Economics. Since the fall of 2010, there is positive growth in the
number of students majoring in Management who opted for this elective (shown in
bold in Table 1). There is also positive growth in the number of overall
enrollment in this course across various majors. Combined, the history of
enrollment confirms the popularity of this course. This is shown in Table 1. The
proposed concentration will be offered beginning in the 2013-2014 academic year.
Table 1 History of enrollment in the course titled “Entrepreneurship”
(MGT 3800) – Since Fall 2010 across majors
Majors |
Number of
students by Majors who enrolled in the course titled “Entrepreneurship” since
fall of 2010 |
|||||||
Fall 2010 |
Spring 2011 |
Fall 2011 |
Spring 2012 |
Fall 2012†† |
Spring 2013*,†† |
|||
Management |
3 |
6 |
8 |
9 |
4 |
9 |
8 |
2 |
Accounts |
4 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Finance |
4 |
4 |
6 |
6 |
4 |
2 |
5 |
1 |
Management
Information System (MIS) |
0 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
Marketing |
2 |
1 |
8 |
2 |
4 |
6 |
2 |
1 |
Operations
and Systems Management (OSM) |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
BBA** |
25 |
13 |
7 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
Others*** |
9 |
11 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
7 |
6 |
3 |
Total per
semester |
48 |
38 |
38 |
32 |
50 |
34 |
Note: The table above
is based on the number of enrollments shown in Banner for the course titled “Entrepreneurship”
and listed as MGT 3800.
*Tentative registration as
observed on faculty Banweb.
**BS in Business Administration,
which is no longer offered and was replaced with the BS in Management
***from outside the
business school.
††The table reports two columns for
fall 2012 and spring 2013 due to the fact that the course has been offered as
two sections in these semesters. Each column lists the number of enrollments in
each of the sections. The total number of enrollments over both these sections
in fall of 2012 and spring of 2013 (tentative) is reported in bold (50 and 34
respectively)
Targeted
enrollment in the longer term is expected to approach 35-40 students, which is
comparable to other majors in the School of Business and Economics. These numbers are for new incoming students
and transfers from internal students.
2013-2014 20
(First year as concentration)
2014-2015 25
2015-2016 30
2016-2017 35
2017-2018 40
Note: The increase
will be as a result of
·
Streamlining
the implementation of Business Development Experience (BUS 4991 and BUS 4992)
course in the initial year. The Ad-hoc Entrepreneurship Committee has
successfully identified multiple opportunities on and around the MTU Michigan Tech campus (and distant) that would provide
students with high quality experiential learning, attracting more students
subsequently.
·
Linking
students in the concentration with like-minded students at other universities,
thus making their learning experience more dynamic and practical
5.
Scheduling Plans
The B.S. in Management with a
Concentration in Entrepreneurship will be a regular on-campus program offering.
6.
Curriculum
Design
The proposed BS in Management with a
concentration in Entrepreneurship will entail making a few changes to the
extant BS in Management curriculum design. The B.S. in Management with
Concentration in Entrepreneurship curriculum is appended to the end (See
attached audit
sheet and course
timing sheet).
7.
New Course
Descriptions and Changes
New Course Description:
Entrepreneurial Management (MGT 49XX)
·
This course would be offered in Spring
2013 and Spring 2014 under the special topics course numbering (MGT4990). Special
topics run for two years before they are added as a regular course. MGT
49XX will thus be offered as a special topics course, to be later changed in
2014-2015 to a regular course through the course proposal/binder process. In the
academic year 2014-2015 the course will have a regular course number.
Course Description: The course examines additional management topics and issues
in greater depth. A single offering of this course (with a possibility of it
being offered twice per academic year in future) will concentrate on how entrepreneurship involves identifying market opportunities
based on new ideas: assessing ideas, crafting a business model, and developing
a business proposal for new and existing ventures. Other details related to the
course are:
Credits: 3.0
Lec-Rec-Lab: (3-0-0)
Semesters Offered: Spring semester (introduced in spring 2013 and
subsequently offered in fall and spring semesters)
Restrictions: Permission of instructor required
Pre-Requisite(s): MGT 3800 (Entrepreneurship)
Please refer to the
audit worksheet attached at the end of this document
8.
Library and
other Learning Resources
The
support of the J.R. Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library is currently sufficient.
9.
Faculty Resumes
School
of Business and Economics faculty resumes are found at http://www.mtu.edu/business/school/faculty/
and specific links to the information on the faculty associated with this
proposal are provided as hyperlinks below.
Primarily
faculty for Management Major courses and Concentration
requirements include:
Dr.
Gregory A. Graman, Associate Professor, Operations and Supply Chain
Management
Dr.
Sonia M. Goltz, Professor, Organizational Behavior
Dr.
Dana M. Johnson, Professor,
Operations and Supply Chain Management
Dr.
Andre Laplume, Assistant Professor of Management
Dr. Saurav Pathak, Rick and Jo Berquist Assistant Professor of
Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Dr.
Latha Poonamallee, Assistant Professor, Organizational
Behavior
Dr. Manish Srivastava, Assistant Professor of Strategic Management and
Innovation
Dr. Tang Wang, Charles C. and John G. Gates
Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Mr.
Roger Woods, Lecturer,
Operations Management
10. Available Needed Equipment
All
equipment required exists within the SBE labs and classrooms.
11. Program Costs
No
additional faculty will be required.
12. Space
No
new labs or classroom is required.
13. Policies, Regulations, and Rules
None
are required.
14. Accreditation Requirements
The B.S in
Management is accredited by AACSB International. The process and criteria for
maintaining accreditation is unaffected by the proposed change. The changing to a B.S. in Management with a
Concentration in Entrepreneurship will be automatically accredited and
subjected to periodic review by AACSB.
15. Internal Status of Proposal
Faculty
School of Business and Economics,
Dean,
School of Business and Economics,
Provost,
Deans,
University
support units,
University
Senate,
Academic
Affairs Officers,
Board
of Control
16. Planned Implementation Date: Fall semester
2013
Introduced to Senate: 06 March 2013
Wordsmithed in red: 25 March 2013
Approved by Senate: 27 March 2013
Approved by Administration: 03 April 2013
Approved by BOC: 03 May 2013
Approved by State: 06 June 2013