Chair: Kevin Clark, PhD.
Carmen and Sharon Danella Endowed Professor in Business Innovation
Associate Chair: Michael Bray
Office: 2083 Bartley Hall
Telephone: 610-519-6924
Website
About
The Entrepreneurial Leadership and Innovation Minor (ELI) is designed for any VSB student seeking to develop knowledge and skillsets in entrepreneurial thinking, innovation, creativity, and design principles. The program is a mixture of courses and experiential elements designed to provide students with state-of-the-art instruction on these topics, and exposure to practice through a series of experiential programs from which they choose. All students who wish to develop agility in creative and innovative problem-solving should consider the minor. The minor is particularly suitable for students interested in becoming an entrepreneur, having a career in creative sectors such as fashion, being an effective agent of change within a corporate or non-profit structure, running a family business, or consulting for a firm or as an independent contractor.
Course Requirements for Entrepreneurial Leadership and Innovation Minor (9 Credits)
Entrepreneurial Leadership and Innovation minor requires three (3) unique courses to fulfill the minor requirements.
Independent study or internship fulfilling one of the ELI minor requirements must be a special section designated for the ELI program.
VSB 3910 (Entrepreneurship Foundations)
This course will introduce students to foundational concepts, frameworks, and skills essential for identifying entrepreneurial opportunities, evaluating business ideas, developing business plans, and navigating the challenges of new ventures. A key component of the course will be hands-on learning, where students actively develop a business plan for a new venture.
MGT 3320 (Independent Study) or Management (Internship)
Approved deep immersion experiences (3 credits Internship or Independent Study) are those that require a significant commitment of time by the student and which either contain an academic component or are combined within an internship or independent study. Examples include: approved internship for credit, the European Innovation Academy, Villanova in the Valley, or Villanova at the Agency with approved independent study. The list of deep immersions may expand.
Required Experiential Component
Students need to fulfill the experiential component by accumulating of 20 points from shorter experiences which may include: attendance at speaker events or panel discussions, field trips to the Philadelphia innovation ecosystem, participation in the Villanova Pitch Day competition, the Villanova Idea Challenge, and other approved experiences. Each semester, a menu of approved experiences and the point value for completion of each will be provided on Handshake and communicated to declared minors by the academic department.
Note:
- Entrepreneurial leadership and innovation minor courses may also fulfill the free elective requirements.
- MGT 3900 is offered as VSB 3900 (Innovation & Design Practicum) before the spring 2027 semester.