Study On The Key Elements And Operating Mechanism Of Entrepreneurship Education In Research Universities In China

The report of the 19 th Congress of the Communist Party of China proposes "to inspire and protect entrepreneurship and encourage more social subjects to join innovation and entrepreneurship." It has affirmed the importance of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial talents at the national level.Research universities' entrepreneurship education(EE)not only responds to national innovation-driven development strategy,but also can promote university development and student growth.How to carry out entrepreneurship education in research universities in our country is still in the stage of exploration,and there are still some problems in establishing an effective operating mechanism.The operating mechanism of EE refers to the working methods of the interconnection and interaction between the various elements of the entrepreneurial education system.This study focuses on the components of the entrepreneurship education system of Chinese research universities,and tries to clarify which are the key elements,then seeks to establish reasonable and effective mechanisms and strategies to ensure the implementation of entrepreneurship education.First of all,the research adopts the method of multi-case study,selects four first-class research universities,including Stanford University,Munich Polytechnic University,Tsinghua University and Zhejiang University,and analyzes the elements and mechanism characteristics of entrepreneurship education in them.Through the case study,it draws the three levels of important elements of entrepreneurship education in research universities.Second,based on the methods of interview and statistical analysis of questionnaires,the author verifies the three levels of important elements derived from case studies and finally concludes the key elements of entrepreneurship education in research universities.The empirical research adopts a progressive mixed research design,namely a small-scale qualitative survey at first which is followed by a return visit to provide an explanation for the conclusion of quantitative research based on the basic analysis of the questionnaire.The main findings are as follows:The key elements of EE in research universities can be summed up as the five elements of the three levels.At the top-level is the goal of entrepreneurship education;at the middle-level there are two key elements: institutional culture of entrepreneurship learning and the support for the transformation of achievements.At the basic level,there are two key elements: research&development and teaching system.Empirical analysis shows that students of different disciplines in different grades have different acceptance on entrepreneurship education.The core goal of entrepreneurship education in research universities is entrepreneurial mindset and ability development.Two kinds of entrepreneurship education paths are proposed according to the two major elements of the middle level.The elements of "support for input into achievement transformation" represent the path of action-oriented entrepreneurship education.The elements of "institutional culture of entrepreneurship learning" represent practice-oriented entrepreneurial education support path.It is found from the interrelationship of the key elements that clarifying the values of EE,differentiating the practice-oriented and action-oriented teaching style,and providing entrepreneurial supporting conditions are the preconditions for establishing the main operating mechanism of EE in research universities.This study proposes three major mechanisms.The first is a stratified student training mechanism.It emphasizes the distinctions between undergraduates and postgraduates of different grades,as well as the differences based on students' discipline and entrepreneurial interest,holding that they should have a structured entrepreneurial education.The second is a motivation mechanism of diversified teachers participating EE.The key point is to analyze the types of teachers,job types and motivation types involved in entrepreneurship education.The problem of teacher shortage can be solved through recruitment and selection,the problem of teachers' risk in engaging in entrepreneurship education through ensuring professional status and tenure stability,and the problem of teachers' self-positioning through contacting professional activities and entrepreneurial activities.The third is the mechanism of resource integration and distribution.The key point is to set up an education center for entrepreneurship,expand the introduction of educational resources,encourage students and teachers to freely attract off-campus entrepreneurial resources.The strategy of improving the effective operation of entrepreneurial education is divided into three levels: universities,governments and individuals.At the university level,there are three major strategies: the strategy of cross-border cooperation,the internationalization of entrepreneurship training and the appropriate service optimization strategy.At the government level,the strategy of participating in entrepreneurship education is to create an entrepreneurial atmosphere of tolerance and freedom and a pioneering external environment for universities.The individual level is mainly about students' strategy of entrepreneurial learning.