Unpacking Why Engineering Faculty Members Believe Entrepreneurship Is Valuable for Engineering Education

Despite an increase in entrepreneurial activity at many universities, faculty perspectives on entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial mindsets are limited. To address this gap, we conducted a qualitative study exploring eighteen engineering faculty members’ experiences with entrepreneurship, including why entrepreneurship is valuable to engineering education practice. We used a systems framework, Activity Theory, to guide data collection and analysis in order to capture faculty perspectives in the context of the broader university system. Our analysis identified three reasons why faculty members believe entrepreneurial knowledge, skills, and attitudes add value to engineering education: 1) they support faculty members’ goals (societal impact, resource attainment, and interest), 2) they support students’ professional preparation, and 3) they contribute to student success and satisfy students’ interest in entrepreneurship. We then discuss faculty members’ need for entrepreneurial experience, an important consideration that is closely related to our findings.