Model for Integrating Entrepreneurial Mindset Education and Experiences in Engineering Students

Abstract

This paper examines the issues of transforming educational experience of our undergraduate engineering students in order to develop the entrepreneurial mindset. Entrepreneurial mindset attributes include critical thinking, innovation, the understanding of the value of input and feedback from diverse perspectives and cultures, basic knowledge of business practices, experience working in and leading interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary teams, effective listening and communication skills, the understanding of how to develop and bring products to market. These attributes are not learned in books, but rather through practice in different settings and in "learning by doing". A model for integrating entrepreneurial mindset attributes including problem based learning, active collaborative learning, interdisciplinary teams and the understanding how to bring products to market is presented.