Although a university degree isn’t mandatory for entrepreneurship, attending college is often very helpful, because it teaches you soft skills like ownership, accountability, time management, prioritizing, and emotional maturity.
Consider gaining experience before starting your business, whether that be through volunteer work, apprenticeship, internship, or general work experience.
There are several questions you would like to ask yourself before choosing entrepreneurship over college – you ought to evaluate your industry, skills, passion, experience, financial stability, and networking.
Entrepreneurship is often a good thing because it provides financial freedom, but it takes a lot of time, diligence, and perseverance to build a successful business.
Many young workers are left wondering if they should start a business and what education is required to try to do so.
A college degree is not required to start a business, but it does help.
College not only teaches students educational topics which will be helpful in starting a business, but also soft skills, like the way to be lifelong learners.
Lauren Grech, CEO, and co-founder of international event management firm LLG Events said your industry will guide what sort of education you would like, but she recommended that each entrepreneur be, at a minimum, conversant in some basic business topics.
“It depends on what sort of business and industry you’re entering. However, everyone should have some basic knowledge of business management, marketing, taxes, and sales,” Grech told the News Daily.
“Legal terminology is often foreign initially and really difficult to navigate, so it’s essential to possess a general understanding.”
Although you’ll know that it’s technically possible to start out a business without a university education, how does one know which career path is true for you?
Before deciding whether to start a business or pursue an education, it is critical to answering several key questions.
Those facing this decision should take the time to answer these questions honestly and evaluate if the pros of starting a business will outweigh the cons of quitting school.
Is a degree required to start a business? Technically, no, but that does not mean you should not get one.
Especially for industries that are more technical and sophisticated in nature, a university degree is often very beneficial, sometimes even necessary, to your success.
If you’ve got little to no knowledge about how business works, or plan on managing complex documents and processes, it’s going to be in your best interest to brush abreast of your skills with a couple of college courses.
Grech believes that getting a degree, or at the very least some sort of education, is often very beneficial when starting your own business.
She said the school experience teaches you skills like ownership, accountability, time management, prioritizing, and emotional maturity.
“It might not be essential for certain career choices. However, it really helped me personally,” said Grech.
“My education helped me develop a correct business model, enabled me to know certain law documents or tax laws by giving me the power to think critically and analytically, and provided the tools necessary to read through these documents thoroughly.”
Even if you are successfully forced into entering your industry without a university degree, you will almost certainly require some type of ongoing education to be an entrepreneur – even if that education is informal.
While college is an investment, so is your business. You will need to calculate your expenses, create a budget and plan your timeline accordingly before dedicating your life to the project.
“Understanding the entire cost is crucial,” said Portesy. “Before you pursue a replacement business opportunity, map the entire investment – purchase costs, opening inventory, and the amount of capital you’ll need before you reach it.”
Sometimes, students will choose a degree and enter the industry for a couple of years, or on the side, to earn money to support their entrepreneurial journey.
If you do not think you’ll make it without a sustainable career to leverage your success, then you would possibly want to specialize in school first.
However, if you’re currently in class and feel strongly about devoting all of your time to testing or growing your business, ask your college about its leave-of-absence policy.
Even if you’re starting your business by yourself, entrepreneurship isn’t a solo feat. Portesy said it helps to ask friends, family, business partners, franchisors, or other entrepreneurs for support.
Wyner also acknowledged that his entrepreneurial success couldn’t have happened without the support of his family and friends.
“Surround yourself with savvy, educated people,” Wyner said. “I was very lucky to have some strong mentors in my corner. Having experienced, wise people there to guide and support you is critical. ”
If you do not have a robust personal network of friends and family, you’ll join groups in your area, with people or online, that cater to small business owners.
Related: 11 Things to Do Before Starting a Business
