1. Explaining University Students’ Career Path Intentions from their Current Entrepreneurial Exposure Jerzy Cieślik and André van Stel Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development (2017)  

2. Summary
We investigate the relation between the current mode of entrepreneurial exposure of business and law students and their future career expectations.
We have conducted a comprehensive survey held among the student population of Kozminski University, Warsaw, Poland
We find that, among students with a family business background, those students who are actively involved in their parents’ business are significantly more likely to pursue joining the family firm, rather than starting their own business.
This result implies that, in order to stimulate business succession, universities with a large proportion of students with family business background may consider launching dedicated programs promoting the interest of students in the businesses run by their parents.

3. Relevant research directions
Career choice remains important topic within the scope of career research
Recent interest in the career choices by students and university graduates
University students’ career decisions and motivations within the framework of research on entrepreneurial intentions.
Entrepreneurial Event Model (EEM) by Shapero and Sokol (1982) and Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) by Ajzen (1991)
Entrepreneurial intentions of students - the role of (entrepreneurship) education
From entrepreneurial intentions to career path intentions
Prior entrepreneurial exposure
Own business: entrepreneurial engagement levels
Family business exposure – engagement levels (none, passive, active)

4. Data
We make use of a comprehensive survey held in May 2013 at Kozminski University (KU)
Addressing the need to adapt student curricula and teaching methods to meet new challenges reflected in the growing share of students with a family business background as well as those combining studies with running their own businesses.
Priority was to get response from a high percentage of the population of KU students and this was established by limiting the number of questions in the questionnaire.
One page questionnaire and organizational effort resulted in the collection of 1490 completed questionnaires, representing 28 percent of the entire population of KU students.

6. KU Students: Current Mode of Entrepreneurial Exposure
Description
No. %
1. Currently I do not run my own business and my parents also don’t run a business.
742
49.80
My parents are business owners.
643
43.15
3. My parents run their own business and I run my own business as well. 68
4.56
4. My parents run their own business. I take an active part in its operations.
220
14.77
5. My parents run their own business. I do not take an active part in its operations.
355
23.83
2. My parents do not run a business, but I run my own business. 94
6.31
Other situation, no answer 11
0.74
TOTAL
1490
100.00

7. KU Students: Future Career Intentions
Career choice intentions of Kozminski University students
TOTAL
of which:
No previous entrepreneurial exposure
Own and/or family entrepreneurial experience
No. %
1. I shall be an employee of a large company or bank.
429
28.79
284
37.72
145
19.67
2. I shall be an employee of an institution of public administration
117
7.85 90
11.95 27
3.66
3. I shall be an employee of an SME without family connections.
129
8.66 93
12.35 36
4.88
4. I shall be engaged in running a family business.
121
8.12 15
1.99
106
14.38
5. I shall run my own business (eventually with a business partner).
636
42.68
242
32.14
394
53.46
6. I shall not be active professionally. 26
1.74 20
2.66 6
0.81
Other, blank 32
2.15 9
1.20 23
3.12
1490
100.00
753
737

8. Implications for education
Earlier initiatives for incorporating entrepreneurship programs into curricula of university students based on the assumption that students lack basic knowledge and entrepreneurial skills
Largely neglected was that a significant percentage of students has already been exposed to entrepreneurship (as in the case of KU).
Standard courses might not be useful for students who have already accumulated some entrepreneurial experiences.
Invoking interest in active involvement in family firm operations through education – KU bachelor project “Growing your family business”
Combining the educational perspective with succession planning when the successor is a university graduate.

9. Lessons for PHD research?