dc.description.abstract | In light of the identified gender gap when it comes to entrepreneurship in Norway, this thesis
aims to investigate the role of universities in promoting more female entrepreneurs. The
increased focus on entrepreneurship and the underrepresentation of female entrepreneurs thus
created the basis for the following research question: “How can the entrepreneurial ecosystem
at the University of Stavanger promote more female entrepreneurs?”
The thesis is based on an exploratory research design and a qualitative research method. The
primary data was collected through qualitative semi structured interviews and analyzed in
accordance with the utilized theory and documents. The 12 participants that were interviewed
in this research are all students at the University of Stavanger (UiS). Of the 12 participants,
50% are women and 50% are men.
The thesis finds that the entrepreneurial ecosystem at UiS needs to foster women's
entrepreneurial intention (EI) in order to promote more female entrepreneurs. This research has
identified three measures the entrepreneurial ecosystem at UiS can implement in order to
develop female students EI. These measures are to provide and expose the students with more
female role models, to enhance the quality and accessibility of courses that are offered and last
but not least, to better the marketing and information about entrepreneurship as an occupation,
as well as the entrepreneurial offers at UiS. In conclusion, female students EI can be increased
by offering more practical training, providing more female entrepreneur role models and
generally enhancing the marketing and information sharing about entrepreneurship at UiS. This
can strengthen the female students' knowledge, competence and subjective perceptions about
their own capabilities. Further, it can reduce their perceived risk and uncertainty surrounding
entrepreneurship. By implementing these measures, UiS can increase the entrepreneurial
intention rate among female students and as such, possibly promote more female entrepreneurs
in Norway.
Key Words: entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial intention, gender stereotypes, social norms,
role models, entrepreneurial education, entrepreneurial activities, economic and societal
development, the University of Stavanger | |