Work in Progress: Gap Analysis for Assessment of Entrepreneurial Mindset in Engineering

Abstract

The efforts to incorporate an Entrepreneurial Mindset (EM) in engineering have grown significantly in recent years. The purpose of this work-in-progress research is to determine what tools and methods are currently used to assess EM, and what gaps exist in the current practice. To determine the current practices we performed a comprehensive literature review, an assessment review of cards on Engineering Unleashed, and a series of faculty interviews. To determine the gaps in the current assessment tools, we reviewed the results from each of the data sets and conducted additional industry interviews. Our team has now reviewed more than 2,000 unique data assets for possible inclusion in an assessment database. Around 300 of the reviewed tools represent EM assessment tools that could be adapted for use by other researchers. Our preliminary findings indicate that most faculty and programs are currently using student surveys to assess EM. Most methods in practice are indirect, with a few exceptions like EM concept mapping. We have developed a database of methods for review by faculty to determine tools that may be helpful for them in practice. The largest gaps we identified included faculty-focused assessment tools and direct measures for students. Our future work includes development of new assessment tools to address these gaps in part.