The aim of the article is to present the basic competencies of entrepreneurs in the contemporary market economy and to compare them with the knowledge, skills and attitudes of potential ...entrepreneurs, i.e. students of technical universities. The research tool used was an original questionnaire. The obtained results were subjected to statistical analysis. The declared intention to run one’s own business was compared to the declared ability to write a business plan. The results of the research presented in the article were compared with the author’s previous study into shaping entrepreneurial attitudes among students. It should be noted that, in engineering faculties, competence in entrepreneurship, management and economics is sometimes considered unnecessary. It seems, however, that the relevant knowledge gained in high school is insufficient. Young people should have a sound understanding of the principles governing the market economy and the mechanisms at work in the labour market. They should have basic legal knowledge, be able to manage and motivate people as well as plan their own business. The results of the presented research make it possible to identify the competence gap and, potentially, create entrepreneurship education programmes for technical universities.
The number of occupational accidents reported in Polish industry and the extent of the resulting losses show that safety is critical for the effective performance of production tasks. In view of such ...high accident rates, a pressing need has been recognized for identifying and undertaking improvement measures. The factors which require a response to secure adequate safety levels for the labor force include worker age. Such age affects worker behaviors, influences the speed of reaction to threats and translates into the scope and nature of effective improvement measures. Thus, worker age ranks among the key criteria for ensuring the safe performance of production tasks. The study revealed relationships between worker age and safety at workstations. Links between the two were found to be particularly pronounced among workers aged 50+. The study’s outcomes were used to define the impact of worker age on the occurrence of threats that impair the ability to perform production tasks.
The article discusses selected theoretical aspects of student entrepreneurship and the findings of the author’s research in this field. Academic entrepreneurship programmes constitute a significant ...component of higher education. In the empirical part of the study, which relied on auditorium surveys, the author found that students are strongly motivated to engage in business pursuits and identified barriers to their entrepreneurial engagement. The respondents varied widely in their opinions on the nature of entrepreneurship and enterprises. Such a broad range of opinions underscores the complexity of entrepreneurship in today’s economies. Programmes of entrepreneurship education in higher education systems should place greater emphasis on the formalities required for starting a business and raising funds for this purpose. The development of entrepreneurial skills from a young age should be recognised as critical for creating a community capable of functioning in a knowledge-based economy.
The article presents the results of author’s research on entrepreneurship of technical university students. The key issue and the aim of the research was to determine the levels of knowledge ...necessary to run a business, in particular legal knowledge and the establishment and management of own enterprises. The analysis of secondary data and the results of previous research reveal, among others, discrepancy in the opinions of students and current entrepreneurs on the importance of business knowledge, a sense of insufficient knowledge of entrepreneurship (interestingly) also declared by students of economic faculties or lack of information on financing their own business despite going to economics studies. The research tool was an original auditorial survey. The test method was a test of knowledge and a self-report questionnaire. The obtained results were subjected to statistical analysis. The premise of an in-depth analysis of the subject matter is the social need to effectively shape the entrepreneurial attitudes of young people. Utilizing the potential of each individual contributes to the growth of social well-being. The use of the potential of students of management departments at technical universities seems particularly justified, as graduates are supposed to have both industry and technical knowledge as well as business knowledge. In the articles, the authors distinguish areas and present results that may contribute to the debate on the subject of entrepreneurship education at universities.
In order to fulfill the duties associated with ensuring occupational safety at work, a broad range of competences are required that are critical to perform work and comply with relevant laws. One way ...to obtain such competences is to complete a post-graduate program of studies. The Poznań University of Technology offers precisely such an opportunity. Its post-graduate OHS program provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary to work in the field while satisfying their expectations. Student expectations are ascertained in surveys designed to assess the extent to which the knowledge and skills taught meet the needs they have indicated. The findings of such surveys are used to improve course design with a view to enabling the graduates to conduct OHS work in both the manufacturing and service sectors. However, to ensure that the courses designed to satisfy student expectations do not fail to teach the skills necessary in real life, criteria other than the survey results alone need to be adopted in defining program content.
The aim of the article was to determine the impact of the pandemic on the possibility of developing professional competences by young women and men in the context of their plans to set up a business. ...The pandemic period resulted, among other things, in new requirements for employees, which concerned their digital competences. Finding oneself on the job market is conditioned by possessing appropriate competences. It was noted that the educational profile differentiates between women and men, acting to the detriment of women’s employment prospects, including self-employed women. Remote learning, which is characterised by reconciliation of various types of life roles, seems to facilitate the acquisition of competences 4.0. Based on the conducted research, it can be concluded that remote learning is conducive to setting up and running one’s own business regardless of gender. It is also a potential facilitator for the acquisition of competences by women who took on family responsibilities.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The scientific aim of the article is to assess the perception of risk in business by young people – potential entrepreneurs. The analysis of the literature on the subject and the ...results of research on the con sequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the Polish economy prompted the authors to attempt to examine attitudes towards entrepreneurship, which may significantly determine the development of the SME sector in Poland in the near future. PROBLEM AND RESEARCH METHODS: Risk is an inherent part of running a business that cannot be eliminated or avoided. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost all areas of human life. The theoretical part uses a critical analysis of the literature on the subject. In the empirical part, the method of online surveys of students from a private university with an economic profile was used. THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION: The first part describes the definition of risk, and then the research methods used in the article. The second part describes the theoretical problems related to: the general understanding of the meaning of risk, the concept of risk in business and classification of its sources, the experience of the entrepreneur’s uncertainty, the relationship between risk and threat, human attitudes towards risk in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The next part presents the results of empirical research on the perception of risk by potential entrepreneurs. The last part of the article is a summary of the analysis of the literature on the subject and own research, as well as the proposed directions of future research. RESEARCH RESULTS: The results of empirical research proved that a relatively large group of respondents, as much as 48.8%, was interested in running their own business. In addition, as many as 60.9% of respondents said that the pandemic did not affect their plans to start their own business. Importantly, over 70% of respondents assessed running their own business as risky, and yet they plan to take such a risk consciously. CONCLUSIONS, INNOVATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The authors believe that it is worth strengthening the entrepreneurial attitudes of young people. An appropriate recommendation for the creators of education programs in this area seems to be the need to emphasize the topic of risk in the economic education of students. The results of the research conducted give hope that thanks to the work of young people who have the ability to adequately respond to difficult external conditions, the SME sector has a chance to overcome the negative effects of the pandemic.
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