The Business ABCs: What Should Entrepreneurs Study in University?

Aspiring to become an entrepreneur can often seem like a difficult goal to achieve. With famous faces such as Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates being labelled as the ‘billionaire dropouts’, it can often be difficult to understand how anyone could start their own enterprise and be successful without a little bit of magic.

While it’s true that some individuals have a magic touch, or perhaps some money, there are many pathways to becoming a successful entrepreneur through dedicated academic study. Courses such as an online MBA degree can provide the budding entrepreneur with the skills and connections necessary to make your business goals a reality – let’s discover how that’s possible.

What Skills do Entrepreneurs Need?

To be successful, entrepreneurs need to be budding masters in their craft. Entrepreneurship requires a number of mission-critical skills, and many entrepreneurs with an MBA have used the skills obtained in their degrees to great effect. For example, a good entrepreneur is typically able to utilise most (or even all) of these skills:

• Effective communication – to be able to be concise and clear with your team. For example, are you able to get the point across without confusing your team?

• Strategic insight – a good entrepreneur needs to be able to understand the bigger picture. Are you able to understand the changes that are occurring in your target industry, and able to find ways to incorporate them into your practices?

• A capacity to learn continuously – to adapt to change and disruption, and embrace things that can bring your business to the next level. It’s important as an entrepreneur to do more than simply hit the books – practical experience is beneficial as well.

• An ability to sell your product. This is more than listing your item on eBay – as a matter of fact, it’s being able to project your product in the best possible light in a way that your target audience can understand and appreciate.

These are only just some of the skills that an entrepreneur may require. In fact, some experiences may focus on some skills, whereas others may necessitate a more generalist level of knowledge and experience. This is where a course such as an online Masters of Business Administration, also known as an MBA, can come in handy.

What Will an Online MBA Teach Me?

An online MBA is specifically designed to provide the business and leadership qualities required to succeed in today’s evolving business environment. Typically, these courses will provide potential entrepreneurs with the skills to take their ideas and make them a reality, while also providing a firm foundation on the issues that are facing businesses today and in the future.

Typically, an online MBA consists of core courses, such as design, leadership, analytics, and strategy. These provide the foundation for further, an elective-led study from a range of fields, allowing the budding entrepreneur to be exposed to a variety of different issues.

Electives can vary, depending on what specialist areas you may wish to study. For those looking to push the boundaries in technology, options to study information security risk and innovation may provide opportunities to develop your ideas. 

For those looking to enhance their leadership skills, opportunities are available to learn leadership skills, particularly in an age where disruption has become the norm. Overall, an MBA can be an incredibly powerful kickstart to your entrepreneurship career.

What Other Study Options are Available?

If you’re not looking to study an MBA at this time, fortunately, there are a number of alternative options to get a taste of how such a course might benefit you. 

For example, depending on your interests, there are a wide variety of business courses available that may interest your particular field of interest. Marketing courses expose entrepreneurs to the skills necessary to get a product off the ground, or a communication course may empower an entrepreneur with the skills to communicate fluently and concisely.

In fact, a lot of business fields offer some studies that overlap with the skills that define modern entrepreneurial prowess. However, few offer the breadth and depth that an MBA offers, and as such, it’s the preferred option for those looking to walk the path of an entrepreneur.

Regardless of whether you’re looking to pursue an MBA or another career, it’s always a great idea to consider speaking to a careers counsellor to see what options are available for your particular circumstances. You may just find yourself surprised by the options on offer.