Critical Evaluation of Entrepreneurial Tendency in Engineering Graduates

Author Name(s): Dr. Sunita Dhote, Prof. Satyajit Uparkar, Prof. Sharad Bhave
Author Email: dhotesn@rknec.edu

Abstract

Economic growth always contributes to the overall growth and thereby “the happiness index” of a country. In the Indian context, growth rate, whether 7.5 or 8.5 is the current topic of debate and discussion is politicized beyond limits. However, the fact remains that growth rate depends on the business generated and that in turn is operated by entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs (employees who possess entrepreneurial spirit). An entrepreneur creates wealth and subsequently helps the growth of GDP of a nation (India). In the present context, the mantle of entrepreneurship rests on the youth of today. Keeping this in view, a project was undertaken to investigate and evaluate ‘their entrepreneurial skills’. For the sake of study, a small section of the youth, engineering graduates is selected. Three hundred students studying in final year engineering belonging to four groups namely Computer group, E group, Civil engineering and Mechanical engineering are focused on ‘the basic characteristics such as need for achievement, need for autonomy, creativity, internal locus of control, risk taking, and general enterprising tendency. This paper attempts to identify the extent of entrepreneurial talent among the budding engineers. The ultimate aim is to forecast a number of engineering graduates turning into first generation entrepreneurs.

Keywords:  Entrepreneurial Tendency, Need for Achievement, Need for Autonomy, Creativity, Risk Taking, Internal Locus of Control, General Enterprising Tendency

Introduction

Start-ups and entrepreneurs as a necessity of any economy to increase in the Gross Domestic Product to make the economy developed one. The current external environment is rapidly changing be it political or technical or legal or environmental. Today’s generation in this given volatile environment has to choose for their professional career options, which is at times very confusing. Thus, entrepreneurship is solution to the innovative career option, as it is disruptive in nature. It can lead to enterprise venture of so many permutations and combinations. It is very important for every student to develop these tendencies, whether they have to open their own business or as a government employee or wants to do a social service or want to work as an employee in the private sector or for any technical sector. So it is very important for the educations institute at large to inculcate these 5 entrepreneurial tendencies in the student, so that they have a successful career in future. Consequentially it is a challenge to enforce entrepreneurial tendency amongst the technical students. As students appearing for technical education are with different personalities and mindsets or are bought up in different sets of background, thus different students may develop their entrepreneurial tendencies in various manners. Therefore, this paper has a goal to study the entrepreneurial features of selected different engineering discipline.

Conclusion

It can been seen that at 5% level of significance, we can reject all the null hypothetical statements against all the 6 characteristics under consideration and accept all alternatives hypothetical statements to consider the fact that there is some significant difference between the four engineering groups with respect to each of the characteristics under consideration. This indicates that the tendency towards the characteristics of all the engineering students belonging to the four different groups does not stand identical. Every group seems to have its own perception towards becoming the future Entrepreneur.

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