Innovation & Entrepreneurship

It starts with an idea. Successful entrepreneurs, however, realize that even the best ideas will go nowhere without a plan - and that the best plans will go nowhere without the will and skill to execute them. Marquette University's major in entrepreneurship is designed to give you the knowledge and skills to know yourself, and to channel your entrepreneurial spirit.

  • About the major
  • Social Entrepreneurship
  • Minor

IDEALISM AND REALISM TOGETHER. Unlike other schools' entrepreneurship programs, Marquette emphasizes a realistic approach to lifelong career planning, not just quick-hitting, fast growth ventures. It's an approach that benefits students who already run their own businesses, as well as those preparing for that eventuality.

KNOW YOURSELF. You'll learn to recognize which business opportunities fit best with the type of person you are intellectually, socially and, yes, even spiritually. A well-planned curriculum combined with classroom visits from a diverse set of successful entrepreneurs and consultants will give you a person-centered approach to entrepreneurship.

BEGIN NETWORKING NOW. Make connections through Marquette University's Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship. The Golden Angels Network brings successful business owners together with students in the classroom and provides early opportunities for start-up investment, mentoring and advising all of which are vital to future entrepreneurs.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

  • Demonstrate the ability to provide a self-analysis in the context of an entrepreneurial career
  • Demonstrate the ability to find an attractive market that can be reached economically
  • Create appropriate a business model
  • Articulate effective elevator pitches to gain support for the venture
  • Develop a well-presented business plan that is feasible for the student

The Entrepreneurship Major and Minor are individualized programs that naturally accommodate all (legal and ethical) forms of entrepreneurship. For students interested in social entrepreneurship, it works as follows:

  • ENTP 3001 focuses on individual self-discovery, including spiritual life, and exposures students to religious motivations for ventures and to social entrepreneurs as class guests (e.g. Jean Davidson of the Yell and Tell foundation and Steve Wallace of Omanhene Cocoa Bean Co. - facilities in Ghana). Students do a self-portrait essay and projects towards a venture, which is a social venture if that is their choosing. They also use a non-prose medium to depict the customer or client experience of their venture. This of course can also be for a social venture.
  • ENTP 4010 is a business plan course, in which students interested in social ventures can write their plans for such purposes.

    Students then take an elective and an experiential course. The elective can be:  ENTP 4931, the Social Entrepreneurship course, will be getting a permanent course number. If they choose ENTP 4931, International Entrepreneurship, which will be ENTP 4040, it includes cases and readings on social ventures, and students can select their project topic in the social entrepreneurship area. For the experiential course, we prefer that they take it in their home department. If they cannot find one that fits their needs, they can take: ENTP 4020 (Consulting to entrepreneurs), in which students can select a social venture entrepreneur as their client. Though it is not required in the academic program, the Business Plan Competition also helps social entrepreneurs develop their ventures.

Minor course requirements - Undergraduate Bulletin

  • A grade of C or better must be earned in each course.
  • Only one course may transfer in for the business minor; the assistant dean in the College of Business Administration must approve any transfer of credits.

Incorporating the Student’s Field of Study

Students can take one (or by special permission) two courses in a non-business field. This allows students to focus their program on their area of interest (e.g., engineering, communications, theater arts, health sciences).

Their work in the business school should also relate to their own field. For example, students are required to complete a business plan in one of the required courses and it is expected that most students will also participate in the Business Plan Competition. In both cases they can write a plan that is related to their own field.

Students and alumni of the program will be encouraged to attend various entrepreneurial events. There will also be several opportunities for students to network with seasoned entrepreneurs.

The Entrepreneurship Minor Adviser is:
John Peterson
(414) 288-7035
john.s.peterson@marquette.edu