4 Things Entrepreneurs Do in College

October 27, 2008 RSS Feed Print

What's the education of an entrepreneur? That is a question I have explored a few times in the past. Chad Moutray of the SBA Office of Advocacy has just written an interesting paper that looks at the empirical data on what college means for self-employed people.

According to the study, if you did one or more of the following in college, you are more likely to be working for yourself as an entrepreneur than working for somebody else:

  • majored in something outside of the hard sciences (engineering, math, chemistry, biology, etc.);
  • tended to be a "jack-of-all-trades"—taking many different courses, but not mastering any;
  • did not go on to graduate school;
  • had a lower GPA than your peers who ended up working in the nonprofit and government sectors.

We shouldn't make too-sweeping statements about entrepreneurs based on this study—it looks at the survey results of college graduates from just one year—1993—and then periodically tracks their job progress over the next 10 years.

But I'd be interested to know if these results match the experiences of you self-employed people out there. For example—do entrepreneurs tend to not be "math people"?

Tags:
small business,
colleges,
entrepreneurship

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No, I'm high in math, but pretty generalized in everything. One statistic he left out: Those entrepreneurs who didn't go on to grad school deliberately chose not to out of a belief that they didn't need to and could do it themselves.

Michael D. 2:35AM October 29, 2008

At 12 I watched my parents lose everything in the '73 recession. It made me very aware of the differences between obstinance and opportunity. I've been a lawn-mower entrepreneur since I was 13. Started appeasing my pyro-tendencies at 15 by opening a hi-way fireworks stand in Oklahoma. Bought and sold British sport cars at 17. Scored in the 99 percentile in Math on the SAT. At 19 quit the fireworks and cars to head for design school in California, stuck around for an MFA, but didn't finish. GPA was all over the map; I found that I either loved or loathed the classes. Worked in marketing for a year, then went out on my own. 22 years later and still in the design business with a healthy income and a lot of time to call my own. In those early lull years of being in business I sought employment, but was apparently unemployable. They did me a favor and kept me on my path even in some frightfully lean years.

Yeah Who of CA 12:07AM October 29, 2008

Never would have believed I had the entrepreneural spirit in me at the time:

Yes - Bachelor of Art

Yes - Couldn't decide on major until, I realized I needed to graduate and move on w/ my lie

Yes - Would like to get my MFA, understand it is/will be the new MBA

Yes - We won't talk about GPA

Worked my own way through college; balancing full-time employment with classes. Allowed me to graduate with some (not much) student loan debt. And, I attended some great universities in Chicago: Northwestern and DePaul.

Worked the corporate gig for 14 years before venturing out on my own. It's now been eight years and nursing myself/my company from one of its worst 2007-2008.

Joann Sondy of MI 4:54PM October 27, 2008

Risky Business

Risky Business

Matt Bandyk, a reporter for U.S. News, explores capitalism from where it all begins, with the entrepreneur, whose risk taking and experimentation provide the roots from which the rest of the economy grows. As much courage as it takes to create one's own business, even the entrepreneur needs some help, and this blog will look at news, trends, and practical advice for starting and running a small business.

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