Entrepreneurship Education in Elite Universities and the Role of University Incubators

Résumé

Entrepreneurship education has emerged as a strategic imperative within elite universities, reflecting global pressures for innovation-led growth, intensified competition for research funding, and increasing expectations for universities to contribute to economic and societal development. The purpose of this study is to show how entrepreneurship education operates within elite university contexts and to clarify the mechanisms through which university incubators influence student entrepreneurial success. More specifically, this article seeks to move beyond general discussions of entrepreneurship programs by identifying the institutional and ecosystem-level conditions that differentiate elite universities from other higher education institutions.

This literature review synthesizes theoretical and to explain how entrepreneurship education functions within resource-intensive academic environments. Drawing on human capital theory, experiential learning theory, and institutional theory, the study argues that entrepreneurship education in elite universities extends beyond classroom-based knowledge transfer. It is embedded within a broader ecosystem composed of experiential learning platforms, structured mentoring systems, alumni networks, technology transfer offices, and innovation-oriented infrastructure.

Elite universities provide distinctive environmental conditions—such as strong research capacity, interdisciplinary collaboration, established commercialization mechanisms, and global stakeholder networks—that amplify educational impact. Within these ecosystems, university incubators operate as strategic intermediaries that reduce venture uncertainty, accelerate capability development, and facilitate the transformation of entrepreneurial intention into sustainable venture creation. Incubators contribute through knowledge support, access to financial and social resources, market validation processes, and network formation.

The article argues that student entrepreneurial success is not solely the outcome of educational content but rather the result of an integrated institutional system combining education, incubation, and ecosystem dynamics. By a conceptual framework that positions incubators as mediating mechanisms within elite university environments, this study provides a rigorous theoretical foundation for future empirical research and advances understanding of universities as central actors in entrepreneurial ecosystems.

JEL Classification : I23, L26, O31, I25

Paper type : Theoretical Research