OneStop myU

An Entrepreneurial Management major or minor is for the person interested in successfully organizing, owning, managing and assuming the risks of a business (entrepreneurship), or successfully assisting organizations in developing new business opportunities (intrapreneurship). Curriculum is designed to range from introductory fundamentals through the development and implementation of real business opportunities.

Our objective is to provide current and future business professionals with the necessary tools to successfully form and develop businesses, and to enable students to function as entrepreneurs or as productive members of emerging, entrepreneurial, or high potential firms. Businesses large and small recognize the need for entrepreneurial skills in today's rapidly changing marketplace. These organizations require individuals with the ability to manage risk, manage across functional boundaries, and creatively engage and adapt to an environment that is constantly changing. Our mission is to inspire and educate the next generation of creative, entrepreneurial leaders.

The Entrepreneurship in Action (EIA) course gives our undergraduate students the unique opportunity of conceiving, launching, and operating a real business as part of their educational experience. Students gain hands-on experience with all aspects of business including strategy, sales and marketing, finance and accounting, operations, human resources, and information technology.

The course runs for two semesters during a student’s senior year. In the fall, students sort through potential business opportunities, develop the concepts, determine the resources required, and acquire the resources to launch two selected businesses. In the spring, the students implement the business plan, manage the business, and determine the exit strategy for the businesses. The student-run businesses receive up to $15,000 in funding and operate out of dedicated facilities at Carlson.

Over its first four years, the Entrepreneurship in Action course has launched nine businesses, generating more than $300,000 in revenue. One of this year's businesses was named one of "America's Best College Startups" by Inc. magazine. U-Guide, another student business, won the Minnesota Cup student category. The course also provides the students with the leadership opportunity to give back and help others. Profits of more than $60,000 from the student-run businesses in this class have established scholarships, funded internships, and supported local non-profits. Four of the businesses were subsequently sold to the students and continue to operate.

Application for Entrepreneurship In Action

An Introduction to Global Entrepreneurship covers the basic characteristics of entrepreneurs, alternative career paths, and entrepreneurial processes at individual, company, industry, and international levels of analysis. Through case materials, guest speakers, and site visits, students will better understand a range of skills for doing business in China, from formulating and diagnosing a business plan to product development and commercialization.

 

Managing Innovation and Change - Sustainability in Brazil focuses on how entrepreneurs create new businesses and how organizations innovate and change. We rely heavily on findings from the Minnesota Innovation Research Program. We will focus on how the innovation journey unfolds in the creation of new businesses, technologies, products, programs, and services, and what paths on this journey are likely to lead to success or failure. We will look at Brazilian organizations that have innovated in areas of alternative energy and sustainability.

 

In Applied Technology Entrepreneurship, teams of undergraduate students will work with University researchers to assess the commercial viability of faculty research on cutting edge technology.