Opportunity–Oriented Problem–Based Learning for Enhancing Entrepreneurship of University Students

The paper presents the results of a study conducted in Riga Technical University with 85 students within the course “Economics of Entrepreneurship” based on an “Opportunity-oriented problem-based learning model” for enhancing students’ entrepreneurship. The model had been elaborated for making students learn: by doing and reflecting, based on their experience and by solving real life problems in order to create new products and services which could be commercialized. Providing an approach essentially different from traditional academic studies in the university, the authors researched the students’ openness to this new experience which was expressed via their attitude, satisfaction, readiness to use it in the future and perception of it as a new value for them. The quantitative content analysis of the texts of the students’ reflections showed that the majority of them were open to this new experience though there was critical feedback related to: the timetable, work in group, having to present ideas to their course mates and some aspects of the study content.