AU Joins as National Partner for Global Research Project on Student Entrepreneurship

Ajman University has joined the world’s largest research project on student entrepreneurship as the national partner of Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey (GUESSS ) 2021. More than 1000 universities across 54 countries worldwide are participating in the research endeavor. The initiative is the brainchild of Prof. Dr. Philipp Sieger of the University of Bern in Switzerland, a QS top 200 and triple crown accredited institution.

Entrepreneurial skills are considered as a key success factor for students in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is therefore crucial to gain in-depth insights into their entrepreneurial skills and develop them. GUESS explores the role of the university in gauging and fostering students’ entrepreneurial skills. AU is coordinating with American University of Sharjah as the lead institution in the UAE for this project.

The research method is a survey questionnaire developed by the GUESSS core team, distributed by email for data collection purposes from January 2021 until June 2021. AU as a partner University will receive a data set with the answers of its students for further analysis, after the data collection stage is completed in Summer 2021. This will help AU get in-depth insights into the entrepreneurial attitudes, intentions, activities, and desires of its students as a basis for future curricular offerings as a strategic partner of UAE vision 2021 and beyond. The project serves as an assessment of the effectiveness and quality of the university’s programs in the context of entrepreneurship. It will enhance students’ awareness of entrepreneurship by offering them national and international perspectives on this key topic.

The College of Business Administration under the sterling leadership of Prof. Akinola Fadahunsi, Dean and the Department of Management under the stewardship of Prof. Guanming Cao, HOD/Head CRC spearheaded the project. Inquiries can directed to Dr. Maria Opulencia, Faculty in the Department of Management who is also serving as the Project Coordinator for this project.