Established in the 1990s, the entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises program Whitman offers is one of the few formal academic programs dedicated to teaching students entrepreneurial skills. The program consistently ranks as one of the top entrepreneurship programs in the country and prepares students who strive to be founders, dynamic employees or successors to family businesses. Students who decide to pursue an entrepreneurship degree learn the skills needed to recognize and capitalize on market opportunities.
Program Overview
The entrepreneurship department offers program tracks for undergraduate and graduate students, and boasts a group of researchers and practicing entrepreneurs as its faculty. Unique to this program, students may pursue entrepreneurial education through individual courses or by declaring EEE as a minor or major.
Courses
There are 12 courses offered in this department, all of which help to hone students’ skills in understanding the full scope of running a business and recognizing opportunities for growth. All students are required to take EEE 370 Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises to kick off their program. After completing this course, students can choose any four major electives along with one business elective to fulfill the major. The major electives offered are as follows:
- EEE 375 – Entrepreneurial Family Business Management
- EEE 378 – Imagination, Entrepreneurship and Creative Problem Solving
- EEE 382 – Entrepreneurial Marketing
- EEE 400 – Selected Topics in Entrepreneurship
- EEE 420 – Corporate Entrepreneurship
- EEE 439 – Entrepreneurship and Digital Commerce
- EEE 440 – Social Entrepreneurship in Action
- EEE 442 – Emerging Enterprise Law
- EEE 443 – Emerging Enterprise Consulting
- EEE 444 – Dilemmas and Debates in Entrepreneurship: Race, Gender and Entrepreneurial Opportunity
- EEE 451 – Finance for Emerging Enterprises
- EEE 464 – Entrepreneurial Empowerment
- MAR 444 – New Product Management
Clubs
An important part of the EEE program is preparing students for post-graduation with plenty of opportunities to engage in real-world experiences. EEE students have access to the Falcone Center for Entrepreneurship, which houses the Couri Hatchery. The Couri Hatchery serves as a place for students to get advice, support and connections to professional mentors.
Highly qualified students also have an opportunity to apply to the D’Aniello Internship program, which provides students with unique opportunities to work directly with a practicing entrepreneur, president or senior executive in Syracuse. This program is internationally recognized and chooses 20 undergraduate and graduate students to partake.
Another opportunity to help students pursue entrepreneurial aspirations is the Panasci Business Plan Competition. This competition is open to all Syracuse University students. The winning team receives cash and mentorship support to make their endeavor a reality.
There are two student clubs within Whitman that also provide a community and resource for EEE students. The Entrepreneurship Club is a group that makes connections between students, professors and professionals through bringing in speakers and hosting networking events. The Family Business Club is a group that works to prepare students for the challenges and hurdles that come with taking over a family business. This group exchanges ideas, best practices and experience to help prepare each other.
Duals
Students who decide to pursue an Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises degree often pair it with another major in Whitman such as finance or marketing.
Career Information
According to Whitman’s 2014 undergraduate placement data, the average base salary for students who graduated with a degree in entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises was $44,945.
Employment
Within this field, the range of companies that students land jobs with is very broad, as some take over family businesses and others join the startup scene. Some students also rely on their second major to help provide them with a direction when job searching.
Meet someone in EEE
If you are interested in pursuing a degree in EEE, feel free to reach out to any of the students or faculty members below.
- Kanique Swinson, ‘16
- Brandon Eng, Couri Hatchery
- John Torrens, faculty
To learn more, visit this page to discover if EEE is the right choice for you.
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