Cultivating Student Entrepreneurship through Community Engagement Initiatives: A Comprehensive Review in A South African Context

Abstract

Present-day high unemployment rates make cultivating student entrepreneurship skills increasingly vital. As the job market landscape evolves towards innovation, creativity, and adaptability, traditional educational systems are being re-evaluated to better prepare students to adapt and thrive in potential career challenges. Community engagement initiatives are one promising avenue for fostering student entrepreneurship, providing students unique opportunities to apply theoretical class-taught content and their skills to real-world settings, contributing significantly to their communities. However, higher learning institutions grapple to properly develop entrepreneurship culture among students and adopt relevant pedagogies, typically depending on traditional teaching approaches, with some ignoring potential benefits of community engagement initiatives in fostering entrepreneurship culture. A comprehensive literature review established the key factors influencing student entrepreneurship efficacy through community engagement initiatives and understand the extent to which these initiatives contribute to cultivating students’ entrepreneurial skills and mindsets. Community engagement initiatives were found to enhance these skills, including creativity, problem-solving, and leadership, while access to resources and a supportive ecosystem influenced student entrepreneurship efficacy. These initiatives transcend individual student development, with far-reaching, positive community impact and improvement of the institution’s image. Further empirical research could devise targeted strategies, incorporating community engagement initiatives to cultivate student entrepreneurship into the university curriculum.