MBA Students & Social Entrepreneurship: A Trend Toward A Degree In Doing Good

Business school students today may not have their eyes set on big bonuses quite like their predecessors.

Studies show that they're turning their finance and entrepreneurial skills towards founding socially responsible businesses.

MSNBC reports that more and more students pursuing business school degrees are basing their courses on an eventual career in the nonprofit sector.

The Wharton School of Business at University of Pennsylvania has seen an increase in applicants who want a degree in social enterprise.

Emily Cieri, the director of Wharton's entrepreneurial program, told MSNBC:

"Ten years ago our students were primarily interested in working in finance and consulting. We're seeing a large increase in the number of students with entrepreneurial backgrounds...They are saying they've come to school to understand how to run an entrepreneurial company with much higher growth and have a greater impact."

Individuals are now taking a business-model approach to solving social problems. Ashoka, a nonprofit that's helped social entrepreneurs start charitable businesses for 30 years, visited the University of Maryland recently to hear students from its business school's Center for Social Value Creation pitch social business plans.

David Wish attended the event to promote his organization, Little Kids Rock, which provides instruments and music instructions free to schools. He also wants to become an Ashoka fellow.

Wish told NPR:

"Being in the presence of people who have devoted their life's work to that is really an inspiring thing."

LISTEN:

Read more about the trend towards socially responsible degrees and businesses at MSNBC.

Comments

[DFresh360]

12:59 PM on 01/20/2011

This is such great news about the new crop of MBA's coming into the job market. I'm currently enrolled at Tulane University and the school makes social entrepreneurship a curriculum focus. In fact we have a business plan competition for social entrepreneurs coming this spring. If you know anyone who's interested, they can learn more and register here: http://bit.ly/ebH3OE Registration closes soon so please pass the word to people who want to spread change!

[condor101]

11:27 AM on 01/05/2011

Great article and podcast.

[Blue Ayez]

02:35 PM on 01/04/2011

Except that modern social entrepreneurship has more to do with social networking than social justice.

[DrMandible]

04:16 PM on 01/04/2011

I've seen plenty of soup kitchens without facebook pages.

[WA-violins]

09:16 PM on 01/04/2011

You've been bamboozled by the pop culture of the word "social." Think social justice, ecology, technology, entrepreneurship and profitibility. That kind of training is what's going on at these schools. It's far-sighted, creative and will undoubtedly have huge impacts on how we do business in the future. As one group of far-sighted folks (the Social Venture Network) put it: "...to change the world, you have to change how it conducts business."

[Blue Ayez]

10:24 AM on 01/05/2011

So I've been bamboozled by California State University? interesting.

[GeriStengel]

09:56 AM on 01/04/2011

And I don't think the trend will dissipate soon. I think students are inspired by the success -- both in improving the world and making money -- of social enterprises such as Patagonia, Method, and the thousands of small values-driven businesses. Students today have been raised on recycling and reusing; they are aware of global interconnections; and they know you can have your profit and retain your values. 

[foxisms]

08:43 AM on 01/04/2011

Nonprofits are the biggest pond of fledgling enterprises. It would make sense to approach them with a degree and get your foot in the door to the working business world.
But, who can say if seeking out NPs is a long term career choice for these grads or a pragmatic strategy to enter an already glutted work force?
The whole concept of "nonprofit" still strikes me as a misnomer...they in fact do business for profit. What business can afford not to? NPs just have a different top down structure than the average business does with a voting board of directors and closer reporting of gains, losses and direction.
Doing business as a nonprofit is far different than doing business for no profit. But the name would imply an altruistic venture.
I think it's one of those terms like "green". A great marketing angle for a modern wave of enterprises.

[lrobb]

04:04 PM on 01/03/2011

How many of these young tyros have a job waiting for them upon graduation as opposed to those who are going to be working as highly engaging and literate barristas at the local coffee bar? Not to say I don't listen carefully to one extremely witty barrista who may be the best literary critic on the planet (and is writing the Great American Novel in her spare time.)

As a parent, the last thing I would want to see is my child entering a career, however close to their heart, that insures they will inhabit their old room for the forseeable future.

This is an avocation, not a profession. It is a volunteer committment. I am estatically happy every time my Habitat for Humanity painting crew finishes a job, but it is what we as a family do on weekends and holidays--not what puts food on the table.

[RandVictims]

08:35 AM on 01/04/2011

Wallstreet and Washington moved most of the jobs overseas, anything that remains will be saturated to managment's advantage. If your child doesn't have viable options in the "Investor Class", he/she won't make enough money to leave your house anyway.

[andyg]

08:56 AM on 01/04/2011

The job's are their it only depends on how well the person does in college. If they graduate at the top of their class they on easy street, if they don't then the prosects are tough.

[GoBlueinNYC]

02:43 PM on 01/03/2011

Eff that. I want money.

[Mark Simon]

08:48 AM on 01/03/2011

this is tragic. You become a doctor, grow a practice and give your time and resources is doing good. Getting a degree with the expectation that the world will pay for you to help others is a joke....

[WonderVenus]

01:23 PM on 01/03/2011

The millions of people who run and work for non-profits disagree with you. As well as every cop, firefighter, medical worker and public servant.

[AnimalLover6]

08:45 AM on 01/04/2011

The fact that you think this is "tragic" speaks volumes about the corrupted values of Americans.

[wsdave]

12:00 AM on 01/03/2011

"MSNBC reports that more and more students pursuing business school degrees are basing their courses on an eventual career in the nonprofit sector."

It'll be fun for them while it lasts, but 95% of them will end up at for profits. There simply aren't enough resources to support that many non-profits, and the government plays favorites anyway.

[Deus Angelus]

11:31 AM on 01/03/2011

Do you understand the difference between a "for-profit" and "non-profit"? Just because a company is non-profit does not mean it relies solely on donations. A non-profit company can still sell products and services, however the profit for the company is reinvested back into the company or spent on community projects.

[wsdave]

04:29 PM on 01/03/2011

I do understand the difference. Tell me, other than Universities, how many non-profits are self-sustaining? Enough to support a bunch of freshly minted grads who will eventually decide that they want to move out of their parents' houses?

[Sungaal]

11:30 PM on 01/02/2011

Awesome! Honestly, the headline, then "Ashoka" caught my glance (History Prof) at first, but very glad I learned about the situation and corresponding organizations...simply awesome.