Effects of Entrepreneurship Education on Students’ Entrepreneurial Intentions: A Case of Botswana

The purpose of this research was to assess the impact of entrepreneurship education on university students' intentions towards entrepreneurship. To test this relationship and attempt to answer the research question "to what extent does University-level entrepreneurship education influence students' entrepreneurial intentions?" a conceptual model supported by the theory of Planned Behaviour was adopted. Data were gathered from 343 final year students at the University of Botswana using a validated Entrepreneurship Intention Questionnaire. The results provide evidence that all three immediate antecedents of entrepreneurial intention; attitude towards entrepreneurship, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control (perceived entrepreneurial abilities) directly influence entrepreneurial intention. Participation in entrepreneurship education was observed to positively influence students' intention to become an entrepreneur by changing their attitude towards entrepreneurship and increasing their entrepreneurial abilities. The implication is that the university curriculum should be redesigned in order to stimulate an environment that is conducive for developing positive entrepreneurial attitudes and abilities. Based on the above, it is recommended that (a) entrepreneurship education subjects be offered as core subjects in the first and final years at the University of Botswana and students' assessments should incorporate linking projects with small firms, (b) the University of Botswana Business Clinic should establish a venture accelerator programme by providing seed funding and an entrepreneurship-mentorship programme. Policymakers need to understand that government initiatives will affect business formations only if these initiatives affect attitudes, entrepreneurial abilities, and subjective norms, which could motivate young people to start a promising enterprise. The objective of the promotion of entrepreneurship policy in Botswana should be to increase the number of individuals considering business start-ups through more determined entrepreneurship education initiatives.