A Decade Examination of Women's Percentage of Entrepreneurship Degrees by Institutional Level and Control
This study aims to enhance our understanding of the influence educational institution level and control have on the institutional percentage of entrepreneurship degrees and certificates (EDCs) earned by women in post-secondary U.S. colleges and universities and to examine trends over a decade, 2006-2016. I find intriguing evidence that institution level (2-year and 4-year) and control (public and private) influence the percentage; however, even with the growing focus on female entrepreneurship, I did not find significant increases in the percentage of EDCs earned by females over the ten years. Closer examination of 2016 data shows 2-year public institutions confer a significantly larger percentage of their EDCs to women compared to both 4-year public and 4-year private institutions. Based on the importance of human and social capital in entrepreneurship particularly for founding high growth potential endeavors, coupled with the empirically shown benefits of entrepreneurship education in building this capital, the results have important implications for educational institutions, entrepreneurship educators, policy makers, female entrepreneurship-based organizations, and economic ecosystems.
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