Bulletin No. 1, 2018

Though some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs have been college dropouts, Prof. Andy Wong , Co-director of the undergraduate minor programme of Entrepreneurship and Innovation (EPIN), argues that a college education has a valuable role in creating better ideas and better entrepreneurs. ‘Contrary to popular belief, entrepreneurship can be taught and learned. It is not so much about starting a new company as it is about being able to adapt to changes and finding new solutions in all walks of life. A university plays an important role in imparting such essential qualities to the students.’ The first university-wide minor programme in entrepreneurship in Hong Kong, EPIN was launched last September with an ambition to foster a creative culture on campus. The programme is open to undergraduate students from all disciplines and nationalities, and encourages them to mingle and collaborate. Teachers of this programme are no less diverse. They are from the University’s business, engineering, law, psychology, journalism, history and social work disciplines, allowing students across Faculties to find something new to learn. ‘There is no such thing as a “self-made man” in the world of startups. Even someone as brilliant as Elon Musk had to partner with people of different backgrounds to come up with PayPal, Tesla and SpaceX,’ said Professor Wong. ‘This programme offers a great opportunity for students to identify their future partners and learn to communicate with people from different fields of expertise.’ Students of the programme are required to complete a minimum of 18 units, or six courses, in three key areas— ‘Mindset and Values’, ‘Knowledge and Skills’, and ‘Practices’. ‘Mindset and Values’ courses develop in the participants an appreciation for creative power and prepare them to be lifelong learners. For instance, the course on design thinking teaches one to think like a designer and combine empathy, ingenuity and rationality to meet user needs and tackle real-world problems. While it certainly takes some nerve to launch a new business, one also needs a set of critical skills to make it sustainable. In the ‘Knowledge and Skills’ courses, students are free to choose topics of interest or of relevance to their future business, from prototype making to capital-raising, from digital storytelling to copyright and intellectual property. Finally, in the area of ‘Practices’, students integrate the individual components of the programme and turn them into a project ready to be pitched for funding. ‘Again, it is not a must for every student to become a startup founder, but it is important they internalize what they’ve learned and retain the key messages, which will probably change the trajectory of the rest of their lives,’ said Professor Wong. What are taught in the EPIN Programme Key Values Prototype Making Copyright, Patents & Intellectual Property Capital-Raising Digital Storytelling Prerequisites to Entrepreneurship Voluntary and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge throughout life The ability to think like a designer and combine empathy, ingenuity and rationality to tackle real-world problems Protecting the brainchild of a creator with the help of law Looking for investors to start or expand the business The use of digital tools to create stories in a compelling way and with emotional impact Analysing and synthesising all sources of information to form one’s own opinion Essential Skills ? Lifelong Learning Design Thinking Independent Thinking Contrary to popular belief, entrepreneurship can be taught and learned.’ - Prof.Andy Wong ‘ Creating a three- dimensional version of one’s vision Equipping Tomorrow’s Entrepreneurs 05