Knowledge in entrepreneurship a boon for UMP students

Entrepreneurship Centre (MyPACE), Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) organised a programme on entrepreneurship that aimed at creating awareness on the subject matter among its students, equipping them with the necessary knowledge about business as well as to further strengthen the national agenda on entrepreneurship.

The one-day programme was held on December 11, 2019 and attended by 30 students who were selected from various courses and academic years.

It was also an impact study on the implementation of entrepreneurship programmes in institutes of higher learning (IPT) in the country. 

The objective was to review the effectiveness of initiatives outlined under the Entrepreneurial Strategic Plan for IPT 2016-2020.

It also set out to have a detailed framework on the direction of a new strategic plan through critical analysis of current acceptance and performance, issues, challenges and inconsistencies as well as the impact on the creation of a conducive community ecosystem.

The invited speaker for the programme was Dr. Suraya Sulaiman from Alpha Catalyst Consulting.

According to Dr. Suraya, one of the main focuses of the session was to address issues between job creators and job seekers, a topic that was being hotly being debated now.

“Some of the basic things proposed included giving emphasis on entrepreneurial lesson at the primary level of education and to have a sound, comprehensive and structured entrepreneurial training at the tertiary level that will help to shape and shift the minds of university students.

“At the same time, other important elements are given equal emphasis as well such as implementing the best approach, reviewing of policies and initiatives, analysing the constraints faced and identifying opportunities for improvements, a better ecosystem and conducive entrepreneurial culture.

“These elements will produce competitive graduates in the future,” she said.

She added that whatever was the chosen field, these mind sets would definitely contribute to the development of the country and the things that would set them apart were their styles of working, their efforts and their results which were based on their competitiveness and endurance.

According to MyPACE Director, Associate Professor Ts. Dr. Hadi Manap, the government had organised various programmes to provide students with entrepreneurial knowledge so they would be better prepared in providing the best services and businesses to their targeted group and in the process, help contribute to the country’s economic development.

“The programme is also an initiative to nurture and acculturate entrepreneurship activities in UMP,” he said.

One of the programme’s participants, Chemical Engineering Master’s Degree student, Mohd Nazarni Che Isa, said the programme had a lot of benefits for the university students.

“To be a job creator is not a simple thing but it is also something that is not impossible.

“One can start from a small business to gain experience and to experience the level of resilience before moving on to explore large-scale business activities,” he said.

The programme started with a discussion session with MyPACE management that centred on the function, scope and policy on entrepreneurship.

Later, the participants and programme coordinators focused on the learning aspect provided by the university.

By: Noor Syahidah Sabran, Entrepreneurship Centre