How to support students considering self-employment

Research from ComRes has shown that only 2 per cent of freelancers felt they had learned enough about self-employment from university. Despite the rise in entrepreneurial studies within business departments, a skills gap persists in providing students with the expertise and confidence to go it alone after university.

So what can universities do to make sure they are offering practical skills to students considering self-employment?

What skills and support do students need?

When Nottingham Business School became the first university to offer Marketing Mavericks, a course designed to help students explore the practicalities of starting a business, earlier this year, it was oversubscribed. Many students said they were excited by the opportunity to explore self-employment and discover the realities of setting up a business, while having the benefit of mentorship along the way. The 16-week course offered a mixture of in-person and online learning and followed step by step all the details a student needed to understand how to find work, set up a business, market themselves, negotiate contracts, find funding and network.

• Show off students’ employability with e-portfolios
• The secrets of supporting successful student start-ups
• Experiential learning gives students invaluable workplace exposure

The course made self-employment accessible. It wasn’t about theory but rather focused on the practicalities and allowed students to learn from business-owner role models to build their confidence and skills to show them that setting up their own business was possible.

How can universities inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs?

What we found was that students needed practical tips and hands-on advice – such as how to find clients, when to become a limited company and how to attract investment – to turn their ideas into reality. They wanted to ask questions and explore what being self-employed would look like – from setting up a business through to day-to-day considerations such as dealing with contracts, GDPR regulations and how much they could realistically earn.

By breaking down key elements into modules, the course provided students with a sort of trial to see if self-employment was for them. Small groups attended networking meetings to learn how to pitch their business, talk to other companies and find collaboration opportunities.

What should a course in practical self-employment skills look like?

Our experience has helped us understand what skills future entrepreneurs need in a practical business course. Here are our key elements.

Offer real-world experience

Find an entrepreneur (rather than a lecturer) to deliver the course. They will offer a fresh dynamic; someone who can speak from their own experience is able to share insights that can’t be found in a textbook. We find that students respond well to the opportunity to talk to someone who has walked the walk and can explain details using their own business as an example. Students don’t want more generalised information and theory; they want to learn how to be a business owner, not a student. They need support with soft skills such as how to talk about their business, and pitch and write email responses to clients; and most importantly, they need to practise these skills to build their confidence in business.

Embrace a cross-disciplinary approach

Make self-employment an option for students regardless of their course. Entrepreneurship doesn’t belong only within business studies; and if universities are to embrace graduates’ desire for self-employment, support needs to be offered across institutes and faculties. Marketing Mavericks is open to all students in the business school, from marketing to business studies. It makes the skills available to students who might not otherwise cover any form of entrepreneurship in their course.

What students need is advice tailored to setting up a business in their area of expertise. Look at how students can use what they have learned in their degree to set up a business with real-life examples and practical advice.

Focus on practical skills more than theory

Students often have their own ideas about what they want their business to be. They need to know the logistics of how to make that possible. Don’t sacrifice the basics to focus on theory. Topics such as how to register a company, what to charge, how to find work and the legal implications of setting up a business are invaluable to young entrepreneurs. Course materials could include a step-by-step guide on how to run a business and a session on what life as a freelancer might be like. Tailor the course to introduce each element in the order the topics or issues would come up in the process of starting their business – from initial concept to managing growth.

Help students to recognise their skill set

When we asked the students why they hadn’t looked at self-employment before, many said confidence was a big factor holding them back. They knew what they wanted to do but felt they needed to find a graduate role to get experience before starting out on their own.

We gave students the opportunity to participate in networking groups to meet small-business owners. This gave them a chance to have someone to show them these skills, work with them on their 60-second pitch, or explain how to get the most out of networking events. It offered real-life experience and an opportunity to prove to themselves they could do it. By offering support through online modules and in-person lessons in onboarding clients, the course allows them to practise essential skills and set up their own business while having additional support.

If we are to support more graduates to realise their dreams of starting a business, we need to offer them the opportunity to hone their skills and realise their potential. Part of that picture is a safe space to practise and learn that shows them that self-employment is an option for students.

Victoria Prince is an entrepreneur with nearly a decade of experience running her own business, Touchpoints Marketing, and she is course lead for Nottingham Business School’s Marketing Mavericks at Nottingham Trent University.

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