Perceptions of Entrepreneurship Education by Engineering Students of Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola, Nigeria

Abstract

There has been emphasis on the study of entrepreneurship in tertiary institutions in Nigeria for both management and non-management students like those undergoing engineering programmes. While much work has been done to assess the relationship between the teaching of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship intentions of recipients, very few studies have been carried out – especially in the Nigerian context – on the perceptions of technically-inclined students to the teaching of entrepreneurship. This study sought to find out the perceptions of engineering students of one university in Nigeria to the teaching of entrepreneurship education (EE). Perception of EE was defined in terms of perceived need for EE, Perceived relevance of curriculum, and Perceived competence of EE lecturers. A census was carried out on the 141 final year engineering students and data were descriptively analyzed using mean and standard deviation, and inferentially, using multiple regression analysis. The study shows that EE was positively perceived across all dimensions. The study further shows a strong positive relationship between perception of EE and entrepreneurial intentions. The study concluded that building a positive perception of EE among students is fundamental to achieving its primary objective Key words: Entrepreneurship education, perceived curriculum, perceived competence of lecturers, perceived role of university, engineering students, entrepreneurial intentions.