The COVID-19 pandemic
has significantly transformed the educational landscape, with students,
educators, and institutions adapting to new challenges and opportunities. As
students navigate the academic terrain reshaped by the pandemic, they are in
pursuit of educational journeys that blend hands-on, practical skills alongside
foundational aspects of traditional academia, highlighting a shift towards more
meaningful and applicable learning experiences. Entrepreneurship has emerged as
a key area of interest, yet a gap exists regarding whether smaller liberal arts
institutions can compete in the higher education landscape and make an impact
by infusing targeted entrepreneurial projects into the curriculum, focusing on
the skills acquired. Through qualitative
analysis of end-of-term reflections and depth interviews with an undergraduate
population engaged in entrepreneurial educational experiences and projects,
using a tripart Entrepreneurial Skills (ES) model as a reference framework,
themes emerged that can help form a better understanding of how students gain
proficiency and compete in a global and digital world through entrepreneurial
initiatives in higher education, including the ability to be open to novelty,
to create solutions to emerging problems, and to communicate effectively.
