Entrepreneurship

• Certificate 

  Students earning a Certificate in Entrepreneurship may take Entrepreneurship courses, including the 3-credit courses, on an á la carte basis. Students earning the certificate take 10 credit hours, which can be completed with a minimum of 6 courses, out of the 13 courses available in the program. In addition to being able to take any combination of courses to meet the credit requirements, students do not have to take the courses in sequence. The implication of this structure is that the Certificate program does not have program-level learning outcomes. While there are a number of course outcomes that are common across multiple courses (e.g., critical and creative thinking), the program structure and student choice mean that we cannot create program-level outcomes. Course-level outcomes for each of the courses in the Entrepreneurship program can be found in the curriculum grid.

• Associate Degree 

  Students earning an Associates of Science in Entrepreneurship take General Education courses appropriate for the Associate of Science degree, 16 credits of Entrepreneurship courses, and 9 credits in one of 6 areas of emphasis - Business Administration, Communications, Computing, Outdoor Recreation, Product Design & Development, and Psychology. The structure of the program means that students must take all but one of the 1-credit courses in the Entrepreneurship program (there are a total of 17 credits in the entire program). Student Learning Outcome for the Associates of Science in Entrepreneurship are:
  
  1. Students will be able to identify issues and problems, gather and organize relevant data and information to analyze and validate issues and problems, and draw logical conclusion through analysis and reasoning, and posit viable alternative solutions. (Analytical and Critical Thinkers*)
  2. Students will be able to demonstrate knowledge of key business and area emphasis disciplines (Knowledge of Key Concepts*)
  
  Students will demonstrate proficiency in these learning outcomes in the following ways:

  • Learn the process of market and product innovation
  • Gain an understanding of community resources available to entrepreneurs
  • Learning business scalability and exit strategies

  
  *Analytical and Critical Thinkers, and Knowledge of Key Concepts, are two of the main learning outcomes that the Goddard School focuses on as part of Assurance of Learning processes for AACSB accreditation. The numbered items above pertain to the Associates of Science in Entrepreneurship and map on to their respectively-listed AACSB learning outcomes, in parentheses. The bulleted items above are how we operationalize these outcomes in this particular program.

• Bachelor Degree

   

The Entrepreneurship programs at Weber State University are unique in two key ways that affect establishment and assessment of learning outcomes. The first relates to the broader curricular structure of the programs, and the second relates to the purpose for which individual courses are structured and delivered. These features are common to all of our Entrepreneurship programs; here, we provide information on the Certificate and Associates programs.

The broader curricular structure is comprised of a group of 1-credit courses that cover a wide variety of topics that prepare entrepreneurs for specific functions and activities as they launch their small businesses. Two exception are ENTR 1002, Startup Innovation and ENTR 3002 (now ENTR 2550), Scale and Exit. The former is a broad introductory course and the latter, while not a capstone, does require a deeper dive into key areas of study.

Individual courses were developed for the purposes of highly focused and applied study in a specific functional area or activity related to planning, launching, growing, and maintaining a small business. The curriculum grid, provided below, illustrates the nature of the courses. The courses were originally developed this way for the Certificate program to ensure maximum flexibility for both matriculated students and community adult learners who are currently developing small businesses. The Associates of Science in Entrepreneurship was developed to give matriculated students a more comprehensive program anchored in Entrepreneurship and complemented by one of 6 areas of emphasis. Certificate students must earn 10 credit hours in Entrepreneurship courses to earn their certificate. Program and course structure drive assessment at the course level for the Certificate in Entrepreneurship program.

The Associates of Science in Entrepreneurship was developed for matriculated Weber State University students, and includes 16 credit hours in Entrepreneurship courses and 9 credit hours in the student's choice of one of 6 areas of emphasis, in addition to General Education requirements for the Associates degree. 

Contact Information:
Dr. Dave Noack
Associate Professor and Hall Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship
(801) 436-7749
davidnoack@weber.edu

Brandon Stoddard
Director, Hall Global Entrepreneurship Center
(801) 243-0663
brandonstoddard@weber.edu

Dr. Jennifer S. Anderson
Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Business Administration and Marketing
(801) 332-9706
janderson2@weber.edu

Certificate:
For the certificate program, assessment occurs at the course level. Learning outcome assessment is aligned with the Assurance of Learning cycle required for AACSB accreditation, which is every two years. The Goddard School completed AACSB reaccreditation in Spring 2023, and assessment of learning outcomes for the certificate will be measured in the 2024-2025 and 2026-2027 academic years. Because certificate learning outcomes are at the course level, data is gathered for each course, each year, even though the assessment of that data occurs every two years. Data is collected from Canvas and house on secure university servers (e.g., Box) for review. For the biennial review period (2021-2023; covered in our latest AACSB review), program faculty used graded assignments in each course to evaluate achievement of course-level learning outcomes. The majority of courses utilize a comprehensive signature assignment to evaluate learning outcomes.

Associates:
For the Associates program, assessment occurs at the program level. The Associates degree was launched in Fall of 2023, and thus falls in step with current AACSB Assurance of Learning processes and timing. The Goddard School completed AACSB reaccreditation in spring 2023, and assessment of learning outcomes for the Associates will be measured in the 2024-2025 and 2026-2027 academic years. Data will be gathered every two years, and will be drawn from a combination of online modules (Canvas) and applied learning activities. Online modules will include outcome-based assignments and worksheets focusing on the three areas of proficiency they will be expected to demonstrate as listed in Section B below. Applied learning activities will consist of preparations for, and participation in, juried pitch competitions and pitch events that students engage in, as part of their program of study. Pitch competitions and events are judged by a panel of community business leaders (e.g., entrepreneurs, businesspeople, Chamber of Commerce members, Goddard School leadership). Documents associated with pitch preparations will be matched with judges' feedback on pitches in competitions and events, and this information will be compared to the areas of proficiency listed in Section B below.