Sufficient and continuous funding

As any activity also the provision of entrepreneurial teaching and learning is based on sufficient and continuous funding. The provision of entrepreneurship education might require additional funds compared to other, more traditional provisions. This is in particular true when new structures have to be established or capacity among teachers need to be build.

Sufficient and continuous funding is indispensable for embedding entrepreneurial teaching and learning with a long-term perspective. To secure funding higher education institutions need to diversify their income streams and identify new money streams, e.g., through stronger collaboration with the business sector or establishing fund raising.

Besides staff, funding is an essential input for entrepreneurship education. In the studies we analysed, two major forms are mentioned. First, the funding includes institutional funds (such as first money stream), and second, funding from additional grants such as seed money from funding agencies or other (governmental) bodies. Irrespectively of the source of funding, studies addressing funding as crucial input point out that continuous funding is most relevant for a sustainable impact of entrepreneurship education. While additional funds are an essential factor for kicking off entrepreneurship education projects, they also bear the risk that interventions do not continue once the funding runs out.

Papers also mention that entrepreneurship education involves more than staff costs and expenses for learning materials. In other words, funding crosscuts all other inputs as infrastructure and the maintenance of ecosystems also create these (Bridge et al., 2010; Maritz, 2017; Maritz & Brown, 2013)