What Does a Career in Entrepreneurship Entail?
It doesn’t take much to be an entrepreneur, just a business plan, problem-solving skills, small business management skills, an eye for market research, smarts, and luck. But one thing all entrepreneurs should have is knowledge. If you choose to earn a bachelor's in entrepreneurship, once you have learned your craft and earned your degree, you will have the skills needed to start a business and head for success. Entrepreneurs typically start a business and run it themselves after getting a great idea. Some of these ventures take off and grow into multi-level industries, but unfortunately, many will fail within 18 months of start-up. That is the main reason why you might want to earn a bachelor's in entrepreneurship or a related undergraduate degree, such as business administration or management, first, before taking on such a big risk. If you are smart, driven, creative, brave, headstrong, patient, and a gambler, then entrepreneurship may be the right career choice for you.
Once you hold a bachelor's in entrepreneurship, you can jump into line for many rewarding careers in business, as your coursework will help you understand business and strategy fundamentals that can be applied to running your own business or someone else’s. With entrepreneur degrees, students learn enough and gain enough insight to design and market products and services, recognize new small business opportunities, and create and run a business from the ground up through proper business administration techniques. You can also further your education and get a master’s in business.
Although there are no certifications required for a degree in entrepreneurship, you can get a “Certificate of Entrepreneurship” if you choose to take the one-year course to earn it. All that you will need to gain this certification is 30 credit points, then you can later continue to earn a higher-level degree that usually takes another year.
Some business colleges will not accept students in their bachelor’s degree entrepreneurship programs until they have achieved either sophomore or junior status, as well as satisfied core educational requirements. Students will have hands-on training that will account for some experience, which is crucial before jumping into risky business ventures. Fortunately, there are usually several options available while earning your degree that involve hands-on training, so that you can learn first-hand while watching experts at work. By the time you are ready to graduate you will be confident of developing your own business plans and seeing them through.
Typically, you will need to earn 120 credits to get an entrepreneurship bachelor’s degree, and you can obtain 30 credits per year by studying full-time. Therefore, it would take a total of four years to complete the course. However, there are some options to help you earn your degree sooner. Some schools offer accelerated entrepreneurship programs where you can reduce that time by about 30%. There is also year-round learning available at various colleges and universities, or another option is transferring credits you received from AP courses in High School to reduce the credits still required.
According to The National Center for Education Statistics, 6 years is now the average time it takes for individuals to get a college degree.
We can think of accreditation as a form of endorsement by a reputable association that stamps their approval on business schools, colleges, or a university for quality educational program operations that meet their guidelines and high standards.
