Motivations for enrolling in university courses: Insights from an entrepreneurship course
Background: Studies on the impact of entrepreneurship education (EE) have produced mixed results, leading researchers to examine the reason for such inconsistencies. This article examines course enrolment motivation, as a possible factor contributing to the inconsistency in findings on EE impact stu...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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AOSIS
2024-01-01
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| Series: | The Southern African Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management |
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| Online Access: | https://sajesbm.co.za/index.php/sajesbm/article/view/673 |
| Summary: | Background: Studies on the impact of entrepreneurship education (EE) have produced mixed results, leading researchers to examine the reason for such inconsistencies. This article examines course enrolment motivation, as a possible factor contributing to the inconsistency in findings on EE impact studies.
Aim: This study aims to identify whether students registered for a business degree exhibit different motivations for enrolling for a course in entrepreneurship and should such differences be found, to identify what the different motivations are.
Setting: Data are collected from second-year students registered for a business degree at a South African university.
Methods: Using purposive sampling, a survey was circulated to second-year business students in class after which the data were subjected to a principal component analysis to check for differences in motivation.
Results: Three categories of responses were identified proving that there were statistically distinguishable differences in enrolment motivation.
Conclusion: Three course motivational factors explain why students choose to register for an entrepreneurship course.
Contribution: This study finds that not all students who have enrolled for a course in entrepreneurship have a desire or interest in entrepreneurship. This study suggests items and dimensions for measuring course enrolment motivation. Hence, the study also introduces a new measure that should be considered in future studies on the impact of EE and suggests further studies to confirm whether it impacts on EE. |
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| ISSN: | 2522-7343 2071-3185 |