Does College Education Promote Entrepreneurship Education in China?

Abstract

The Higher Education Expansion (HEE) policy implemented by the Chinese government in 1999 provides an exceptional opportunity to study the impact of university and college education (graduates) on entrepreneurship in China using an econometric approach. The study applied secondary data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS) to examine the role of entrepreneurship education on Chinese entrepreneurship intentions from 2005 to 2019. The study used fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) and ordinary least squares (OLS) to estimate the long-run association between the variables. The study further accounts for endogeneity using two-stage least squares (2SLS). The findings show that graduates (undergraduates, master’s, and postgraduates) positively influence entrepreneurship education. This means that people who have passed through the higher education system are likely to have taken a program or programs in entrepreneurship that motivate them to create new business. The acquisition of knowledge and skills about entrepreneurship seems to rise with graduates. Moreover, entrepreneurship education increases entrepreneurship intentions in China. However, human capital decreases entrepreneurship intentions. The government should leverage further the policy benefits and promote the passion of entrepreneurship education within colleges and universities.