O empreendedorismo no ensino superior

: o caso do Pólo de Viseu da Universidade Católica Portuguesa

Abstract

The main objective of this thesis is to conduct a descriptive analysis of the entrepreneurial propensity of students of the Catholic University - Campus de Viseu. I propose to trace the profile of entrepreneurial students, knowing the favorite type of employment, which realize the fears and difficulties that affect the creation of companies and assess the importance of the initiatives of higher education in promoting entrepreneurial skills in students. In this context, this study combines some assumptions and theoretical foundations about entrepreneurship and higher education with an empirical investigation, which through the application of a questionnaire is expected to know the students' entrepreneurial spirit. It is a quantitative research, in which a questionnaire was applied in a sample of 348 students of the Catholic University - Campus de Viseu. The research model includes the following elements: sociodemographic, socio-professional data, image of entrepreneurship and interest in creating a new company, being developed research hypotheses related to these elements. The results of the empirical research conducted within this dissertation did not corroborate some of the findings obtained in the theoretical part, since it was found that respondents with family and businessmen who attended programs of international mobility of students did not demonstrate a greater propensity entrepreneurial. The achieved results also suggest that sex did not influence the business creation and perception of the professional future of respondents. However, the level of education attended was related to employment preferred by respondents. With this thesis concludes that the fears and difficulties in creating/developing a business, as well as some factors that influence the success of a company influence the entrepreneurial propensity. Thus, it is essential to highlight the importance of entrepreneurship, both for individuals and for the development of society and so it is essential to enhance their promotion especially among the school community.

Date of Award	6 Jan 2014
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Ana Filipa Pereira de Sousa Ramos Martins Moreira (Supervisor)