The Entrepreneurship curriculum uses an innovative sequence of courses designed to give the undergraduate student an in-depth understanding and appreciation of new-venture creation and growth management. These courses provide the needed basic concepts, and help develop skills while exposing students to best practices in various functional areas.

Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Major and Minor:

The Management Department developed an undergraduate Entrepreneurship major and minor during 1997-98 under a grant from the Coleman Foundation. The major was formally launched in the fall semester 2001 and currently more than 50 students have declared intent to major in Entrepreneurship. The program includes three core courses along with supporting courses in Accounting, Marketing, Finance, Information Technology and Law.

Introduction to Entrepreneurship requires students to develop a business plan. Managing the Entrepreneurial Venture, focuses on post start-up issues. Field Projects in Entrepreneurship places student teams in real businesses. A strong attempt is also being made to promote the Minor to the other colleges. Students from Dietetics, Graphics design, Hotel Management, Journalism, Life Sciences, Allied Health, Construction Management, Manufacturing, Quality, Geographical Information Systems, Paints & Coatings, Dance, Music, Film Making have been targeted and are now enrolling in Entrepreneurship courses. At least 5 sections of MGT 388 Introduction to Entrepreneurship are offered each year enrolling at least 175 students.

The Management department has built a nucleus of five faculty members in Entrepreneurship. In addition, there is a strong pool of adjuncts with entrepreneurial experience that teach in the area. There are several other faculty members in other departments in the COB who teach courses in the support functions.

Further, there are other individuals in other colleges on campus with primary interest in several industry verticals like Manufacturing and Interdisciplinary Technology, Life Sciences, Allied Health, Bio-informatics, GIS, Computer Graphics, Computer Science and Hospitality who have expressed a strong desire to get involved and will be co-opted to teach specialty courses and modules detailed in the proposed initiative.

MBA Specialization in Entrepreneurship:

As part of a revamp of the MBA program, a specialization in Entrepreneurship has been approved. A student is required to complete 15 credit hours for this specialization.

Graduate Programs in Entrepreneurship

MBA Specialization in Entrepreneurship

This specialization is designed to develop competencies for students who are either interested in becoming entrepreneurs or are currently involved in growth businesses. The competency areas cover practical skills including identifying an entrepreneurial opportunity, designing the business, obtaining financing and managing the growth process. In addition, the student should have first-hand experience with a young company, or spend time observing how entrepreneurs confront and solve problems, or work on the creation of a new business enterprise. Coursework focuses on skill development for practical development of start-up and growth businesses, rather than theory and concepts. The specialization includes three courses (9 credit hours) drawn from the College of Business. Full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty teach these courses.

Graduate Certificate Program in Entrepreneurship

This certificate program is designed to develop competencies for students who are either interested in becoming entrepreneurs or are currently involved in growth businesses. The competency areas cover practical skills including identifying an entrepreneurial opportunity, designing the business, obtaining financing and managing the growth process. In addition, the student should have first-hand experience with a young company, or spend time observing how entrepreneurs confront and solve problems, or work on the creation of a new business enterprise. Coursework focuses on skill development for practical development to start-up and growth businesses, rather than theory and concepts. The certificate may provide a foundation for additional graduate work in business administration, or enhance the skills of those who have a degree and are looking to start a business or are involved in a growing business.

The certificate includes five courses (15 credit hours) drawn from the College of Business. Full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty teach these courses. The certificate offers lifestyle-oriented scheduling for working adults when possible. Features of the certificate include:

• Individuals can obtain the Certificate without enrolling in the MBA program
• At least one course is offered in an on-line format, other courses may be offered in a hybrid format.
• Courses may be offered at convenient times (eg: evenings and weekends at the Livonia site as well as in Ypsilanti.
• Instructional strategies are oriented toward active learning methods including on-site projects with entrepreneurial organizations.
• It will be possible to complete the program in one year.

Courses being offered:

MGMT 570 New Venture Creation

The objectives of this course are that students develop skills in: creating and finding profitable and durable venture opportunities, identifying market opportunities appropriate to the venture, identifying and determining the necessary resources available for the venture, and identifying the future consequences of decisions. Finally, students should be able to develop a comprehensive business plan for a new or growing venture.

MGMT 603 Corporate Entrepreneurship: Innovation & Technology Commercialization

The goal is to provide students the necessary skills to develop and commercialize innovative technologies in a corporate environment. The course objectives are two-fold:

• to develop an awareness and understanding of the range, scope, and complexity of issues involved in the creation of an organizational climate or environment that helps recognize, nurture and grow the entrepreneurial activities within the confines of large, well established firms.
• to gain insight to the effective commercial exploitation of technological and organizational innovation in such a context.

MGMT 660 Field Studies in Entrepreneurship

The goal of this course is to provide students hands-on experience in the challenges of building a high-growth entrepreneurial venture. The course objectives are to develop a variety of entrepreneurial skills, including:

• Bootstrapping and working with very limited resources.

• Decision-making under uncertainty and ambiguity and with very little information.

• Persevering, adapting and responding against seemingly insurmountable odds.

• Leading, motivating and keeping a team intact.

• Assuming responsibility for designing and delivering complete projects under strict time, cost and quality guidelines.

MGMT 614 Growth Strategies for Entrepreneurial Ventures

This course focuses on the critical management problems and issues faced by firms that are in a young, volatile, high growth stage of their development. The main goal of this course is to develop an overarching perspective on these firms' unique circumstances integrating across all critical functions. The following topics will be covered as they relate to growing ventures: vision and strategy, market assessment, financial analysis and projections, product/market positioning, operations, marketing, organization design and management style, etc.

MGMT 636 Current Topics in Entrepreneurship

Topics include, but are not limited to: Family business, Franchising, Management of Innovation, Corporate Entrepreneurship.

The course focuses on identifying and Evaluating opportunities, Strategic Planning (including decision making), Developing and implementing a managerial control system, Setting up an effective and efficient operations system, Human resource strategies (recruitment, selection, performance appraisal), Management skills (leadership, negotiation, conflict resolution), Oral and Written communication.