Influence of Entrepreneurship Education on Students’ Innovation and Creativity in Nigerian Public Universities

Abstract

Entrepreneurship education is designed to equip students with the skills and knowledge required to start and run successful businesses, as well as to foster an entrepreneurial mindset. Through entrepreneurial courses, students are expected to learn how to identify market opportunities, develop business plans, and acquire the necessary resources to bring their ideas to fruition. They also learn about risk management, financial management, and marketing strategies, which are essential skills for any entrepreneur. Hence, this study examined the influence of entrepreneurship education on students' innovation and creativity. Multiple regression analysis was employed to analyse the data collected from 244 undergraduate students in federal universities in north-central geo-political zone, Nigeria. The findings revealed that (1) there is a positive significant relationship between entrepreneurship education and students’ innovation; (2) entrepreneurship education has a significant influence on students’ creativity. Therefore, it is broadly recommended that universities should not see entrepreneurship education as the courses that must be passed through test, presentations and examinations, rather the courses should be assessed based on success recorded by students in their chosen areas of business or ingenuity (practical evaluation).