Drexel University

Academic Offerings in Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship curricula are prevalent throughout Drexel University. Courses are offered in many colleges and schools across campus, and LeBow College of Business offers full programs of study in entrepreneurship including: an undergraduate concentration in entrepreneurship; an undergraduate minor in entrepreneurship for interdisciplinary study for all Drexel students; and a MBA students can choose elective courses to complete a concentration in entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurial Skills Workshops
Aspiring and experienced entrepreneurs, undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, staff, alumni, and business executives attend this series to develop skills necessary to establish and grow their businesses. This series draws on the leadership of business executives and entrepreneurs, with each workshop focusing on a specific aspect of entrepreneurship.

Baiada Center Competitions & Annual Entrepreneur Conference
The Baiada Center hosts several rigorous business plan competitions each year, providing a process that enables students to turn great ideas into great businesses by taking the mystery out of new venture creation. As part of the process, students are encouraged to form interdisciplinary teams, to take ideas from the concept phase through a feasibility study/market analysis to a full business plan, and to build a new venture. These competitions are designed for students across all schools at Drexel University and welcome the participation of students not enrolled in the entrepreneurial or business curriculum.

Business Plan Competitions include: Business Concept Paper and Pitch Competition, Business Plan Competition and the Baiada Business Incubator Competition. Student teams receive extensive feedback and written comments from a large contingent of judges. The judges consist of members from the entrepreneurial community with extensive experience in building and/or reviewing business plans and include CEOs, venture capitalists, and other seasoned professionals. LeBow College’s Baiada Center provides extensive support to participating students through academic coursework, business plan workshops, and hands on training, advice and council from our Baiada Mentors.

The Entrepreneur Conference represents the culmination of the Baiada Center’s entrepreneurial activities each year, where hundreds of regional entrepreneurs, business executives, students and faculty come together in a celebration of the entrepreneurial spirit. The day’s events include: an engaging and informative panel discussion by influential members of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, a business plan competition, where six teams vie for seed capital, in-kind services and space in the Baiada Center Incubator to start their companies, a luncheon and keynote speaker, the announcement and celebration of the winners of the incubator competition, and a networking reception.

Baiada Business Incubator
The Baiada Center offers a robust clinical atmosphere geared toward cultivating entrepreneurs and companies within the Drexel University community and throughout the Greater Philadelphia region. The center provides entrepreneurs with a continuum of care as they move through business maturity. While the majority of incubators across the region and country offer a passive approach toward company incubation, the Baiada Center focuses heavily on company cultivation. In addition to offering space and physical infrastructure, the center provides valuable advice and counsel, mentoring, skills workshops, and company progress tracking and measurement.

Drexel Entrepreneur Association
The Drexel Entrepreneur Association (DEA) is a student-run organization that prepares students to become entrepreneurs. The organization’s two main focuses are the development of interest and passion within students, and providing an opportunity for creation and connection. The DEA holds a variety of programs that link students to available opportunities for growth in the region, including panels, guest speaker events, networking events, and competitions. The DEA also works closely with the Baiada Center to connect students with opportunities such as business plan competitions, local venture seed programs, and workshops. Members of the DEA hone their business plan creation skills and have ample opportunities to network with regional entrepreneurs—which often lead to mentorship and internship opportunities.

MGMT 260 – Introduction to Entrepreneurship
This course focuses on entrepreneurship as a generic activity, including start-ups and corporate entrepreneurship. It explores the opportunities and challenges faced by individuals starting up new ventures and the probable paths of career development for the students pursuing entrepreneurship

MGMT 363 – Directed Study in Entrepreneurship
This course provides students with real experiences in the realm of entrepreneurship under the guidance and direction of the Baiada Center for Entrepreneurship.

MGMT 364 – Technology Management
This course focuses on the dynamic of technological innovation and change, in particular, how new technologies create entrepreneurial opportunities. The course examines how industries and firms are transformed by new technologies and what factors affect innovation performance.

MGMT 365 - Business Plan for Entrepreneurs
Teaches students how to prepare a comprehensive strategy for launching a new business. The vehicle for achieving this is the preparation of a start-up business plan based on a selected opportunity.

FIN 335 - Entrepreneurial Finance
Brings financial management decision, tools and techniques typically applied in corporate contexts into the realm of entrepreneurship. This course presents the importance of understanding and applying entrepreneurial finance methods and tools to help ensure a successful venture.

The LeBow College of Business offers academic programs in Entrepreneurship as follows:

Undergraduate concentration in Entrepreneurship as part of the Business Administration curriculum

Undergraduate minor in Entrepreneurship for interdisciplinary study by all Drexel students

Entrepreneurship Undergraduate Concentration:
In addition to required courses, students are given the option to pursue entrepreneurial specialization in areas of accounting, law and/or new product development.  Students are also given the opportunity to sharpen their entrepreneurial and consulting skills through experiential learning by completing real life consulting projects with existing entrepreneurial ventures from the business community.

Undergraduate Minor in Entrepreneurship (24 credits minimum):

The minor in Entrepreneurship is designed for students from a range of backgrounds who are interested in starting their own ventures, working for start-up companies, or pursuing traditional jobs with large corporations and consulting firms that may involve launching new business units, joint ventures, and creating strategic alliances.

The curriculum draws upon Drexel University's tradition of technological excellence and the offerings of the Baiada Center for Technology Entrepreneurship. Coupled with the student co-op experience, the program provides a distinctive curriculum that may encompass real entrepreneurial issues.

A list of courses may be viewed at:
http://www.lebow.drexel.edu/Centers/Baiada/Entrepreneur/EntCurric.php

Entrepreneur Magazine/Princeton Review - Undergraduate Programs Sixth in the Nation; Graduate Programs Third in the Nation

BusinessWeek 2009 Undergraduate Business Programs
Top 50 Private Institution
No. 86 in the Nation

The Carnegie Foundation
Drexel University - Research Universities (High Research Activity)
Top 30 Private Universities in the Nation

School type: Four Year, Private, Founded: 1891

Affiliation: None

Web site: http://www.drexel.edu/

Student Profile:

Number of undergraduate, full-time students:
2550

Percentage of undergraduate, full-time male students? Female students?
65% Male, 38% Female

Number of states represented by student body:
25

Number of countries represented by student body:
80

Percentage of international students:
20%

Percentage of minority students:
12%

Number of students participating in entrepreneurship:
278

Faculty Profile:

Number of full-time faculty:
106

Student/Faculty Ratio:
22:1

Athletics:

Athletics division, conference, number of varsity sports:
NCAA Division I, Colonial Athletic Association , 16 Varsity Sports

Financial:

Cost of tuition:
$38,000

Percentage of students who receive some financial aid:
97%

Laurence A. Baiada Center for Entrepreneurship in Technology
3225 Arch Street
Ground Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19104

215-895-0300
Fax: 215-895-0310

Executive Director
Mark Loschiavo

215-895-0301

Mark.p.loschiavo@drexel.edu