Linkage Between Demographic Profile of Students and Entrepreneurial Skills – An Empirical Study

Abstract

Entrepreneurship is bound to play a critical and pivotal role in the growth and development of the economy in the coming years. It has been acknowledged as one of the essential factors determining the growth and development of any country. Entrepreneurs and enterprises contribute to building a competitive and dynamic knowledge based economy capable of sustainable economic growth and greater social cohesion. Entrepreneurship is a broad term encompassing a set of skills that includes creativity, leadership and communication, taking risks, persistence, hard work, motivation and teamwork. Entrepreneurship is an activity, which leads to the creation and management of a new organization designed to pursue a unique and innovative opportunity. It involves measures to encourage individuals to become entrepreneurs and equip them with the necessary skills to make successful business. In essence entrepreneurship is about spotting opportunities, creating new ideas and having confidence and capabilities to turn these ideas into working realities. Entrepreneurship is currently being encouraged and embraced by educational institutions, government, policy makers, society and corporations. It is high on the agenda of policymakers of higher education in order to encourage students in developing entrepreneurial skills in their area of specialization and thereby increasing their employment opportunities. In addition, today’s world with its burgeoning population offers limited venues of employment. This makes entrepreneurship all the more necessary for self-employment and creating more employment opportunities.