Entrepreneurship in education
Motto: The
Seinäjoki UAS student possesses an entrepreneurial spirit and is capable of
developing and creating new businesses.
Entrepreneurship and the promotion of it is viewed in three ways:
1) Entrepreneurship is entrepreneurial-type activity, which does not have to
have a direct connection to business or the practice of business.
2) Entrepreneurship is defined as the creation of new business or the
development of existing business. In this way, entrepreneurship is increasingly
associated with skills known as business competence.
3) Entrepreneurship is defined as the establishment of one's own business.
There are
three objectives for promoting entrepreneurship in Seinäjoki UAS students:
1) To
encourage the development of entrepreneurial spirit and an entrepreneurial
attitude as well as the heightening of interest toward entrepreneurship.
2) To improve the knowledge and skills needed in entrepreneurship and to promote
entrepreneurship as a career choice.
3) To support and guide those seriously considering a career in
entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneurial spirit
is developed in all degree programmes through pedagogy and practices that
promote innovativeness, creativity, visualisation and the ability to take risks.
The utilisation of these methods is not dependent on the actual content of the
course in question. Entrepreneurial spirit is also promoted through various
theme days, such as the SeAMK Storm (SeAMK Myrsky).
More extensive pedagogic solutions and learning environments in the schools used to promote the knowledge and skills needed in entrepreneurship include virtual business activity, partnership business activity, project workshops, online forestry office, project learning based on needs in the working world, SeAMK Hyvinvointipalvelut (wellness services), Young Skills and Raami co-operatives.
For students considering a career in entrepreneurship, the institution offers courses across degree programmes in addition to the pedagogic methods and courses in their own degree programme. Examples of such courses include Business Start-up Planning and Business Basics. The national Sytyttäjä (ignition) competition offers students the opportunity to compete with business ideas. There are also general courses available to everyone, which deal with business development. These include Financial Planning and Tools for Establishing Business, Expanding and Developing Business Activities, Family Business and Succession, Networks in Business.
The
knowledge, skills and attitudes associated with entrepreneurship are monitored
with the Entre Intentio meter.
This is a tool with which the development of students' interest in,
consideration for, competence in and intention to engage in entrepreneurship are
measured from the time they begin their studies until they graduate. The tool
helps to monitor the impact of various procedures to promote entrepreneurship on
the development of attitudes and intentions.
The primary
purpose of the tool is to seek out a potential group of students who are
considering and have intention to engage in entrepreneurship and to do this in
the earliest phase of their studies as possible. In this way, they can begin
along their entrepreneurial path through career counselling and attend courses
that promote entrepreneurship and Yritystalli. All of the degree programmes
offer students the opportunity to participate in Yritystalli in addition to
their other studies. Yritystalli enables students to develop their business
ideas and expertise as future entrepreneurs while they study and to connect what
they learn to their other studies. Each school has its own Yritystalli manager.
The
Yritystalli managers in the schools and other locations:
School
of Culture and Design:
Merja Juppo
Business School, Seinäjoki:
Helena Hannu and Tero Turunen, Kauhajoki:
Elina Ojala
School of Agriculture and Forestry: Ilmajoki and
Ähtäri: Heikki Holma
School of Technology:
Jari Rajamäki
School of Health Care and Social Welfare:
Minna Hautamäki
