Entrepreneurship Education for Youth Empowerment in Public Universities of Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh is a country of 163 million people, where 4.2% of the labor force  is unemployed and the unemployment rate among the university graduates is  even higher than less educated people. If the trend continues, the demographic  dividend of the country will be changed and the economic system will be affected  badly. Therefore, this qualitative study has shed light on entrepreneurial skills  development in public universities in the country. Data has been collected from  post-graduate students, teachers and entrepreneurs of public universities and  from educational experts using FGD guidelines and key informant interview  questionnaires. Following the data driven thematic analysis, data has been analyzed  and findings have been presented in different themes. Data shows that, there are no  curricular activities in any social science faculty of the sample public universities  for developing entrepreneurial skills for youth empowerment, although some co curricular activities help students develop those skills. Students and entrepreneurs  found some courses and the university environment is helpful to some extent. All  the respondents recommended to redesign the academic programs including some  entrepreneurial courses in order to address the job markets and industry demands.  Entrepreneurs and educational experts emphasized on redesigning the curriculum  of the social science department for preparing graduates with contemporary  knowledge and essential skills to survive in the ever changing global world.