South Africa has invested heavily in entrepreneurship education, hoping it will become a catalyst for economic growth, innovation and job creation. Universities, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges, private higher education institutions, Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) and government-backed enterprise development initiatives have all expanded programmes designed to equip aspiring entrepreneurs with the knowledge to start businesses.
Yet despite this growth, one uncomfortable question continues to linger.
Are these programmes producing entrepreneurs who build sustainable businesses—or simply graduates who understand entrepreneurship in theory?
According to Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the first quarter of 2026, more than six in ten South Africans aged between 15 and 24 are unemployed. Against this backdrop, entrepreneurship has increasingly been positioned as a practical response to one of the country’s most pressing socio-economic challenges.
For Dr Shaheen Khan, Senior Academic and Programme Co-ordinator at REGENT Business School, the issue is no longer whether entrepreneurship education is expanding—but whether it is delivering measurable entrepreneurial outcomes.
When Graduation Isn’t the Finish Line
Across South Africa, thousands of learners complete entrepreneurship-related programmes every year.
Educational institutions proudly report enrolment numbers, programme completion rates and learner satisfaction. While these indicators provide useful administrative insights, Dr Khan argues that they fail to answer the most important question:
How many graduates actually go on to build successful businesses?
Entrepreneurship education has evolved significantly over the past two decades.
Initially, programmes focused on introducing entrepreneurial thinking, business fundamentals and opportunity recognition. While these remain valuable, research consistently shows that knowledge alone does not create entrepreneurs.
The true measure of success lies in whether graduates establish businesses, generate employment and contribute meaningfully to economic growth.
Why Theory Alone Isn’t Enough
Many entrepreneurship programmes continue to rely heavily on classroom-based teaching.
Students often leave with a strong understanding of business plans, marketing strategies, financial forecasting and entrepreneurial concepts. However, they may have limited exposure to the practical realities of launching, managing and growing a business in a competitive market.
This disconnect between learning about entrepreneurship and actually practising it creates one of the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurship education today.
Entrepreneurship Thrives in Ecosystems, Not Isolation
International research points towards a different approach.
Drawing on the work of Neck and Greene (2011), Dr Khan explains that entrepreneurship should be taught as a method rather than simply as a body of knowledge.
That means creating environments where students actively engage in:
- Experimentation
- Opportunity identification
- Venture development
- Problem-solving
- Innovation
rather than learning these concepts solely through lectures and textbooks.
Successful entrepreneurial ecosystems also extend beyond the classroom.
They combine formal education with mentorship, business incubation, industry engagement, networking opportunities and access to innovation infrastructure.
These integrated environments allow aspiring entrepreneurs to test ideas, build prototypes, receive expert feedback and refine business models before entering the marketplace.
Learning by Doing Builds Stronger Entrepreneurs
Research by Morris et al. (2013) further supports this approach.
Experiential learning has been shown to strengthen entrepreneurial competencies such as:
- Innovation
- Resilience
- Adaptability
- Opportunity recognition
The implication is clear.
Entrepreneurship education becomes significantly more effective when learners gain practical experience alongside theoretical knowledge.
Responding to South Africa’s Entrepreneurial Reality
South African entrepreneurs operate within a uniquely challenging environment.
Limited access to finance, regulatory hurdles, infrastructure constraints and highly competitive markets mean that starting a business requires more than understanding entrepreneurial theory.
According to Dr Khan, institutions must therefore move beyond teaching entrepreneurship as a subject and instead create environments where entrepreneurship becomes an active process.
That means encouraging students to innovate, solve real-world problems and engage directly with enterprise development throughout their studies.
An Integrated Approach at REGENT Business School
Some higher education institutions have already begun adopting this ecosystem-based model.
At REGENT Business School, entrepreneurship education combines innovation spaces, enterprise incubation and industry engagement to expose students to practical business development.
A central part of this approach is iLeadLAB, the institution’s innovation and makerspace environment.
Here, students participate in:
- Design thinking
- Practical problem-solving
- Prototyping
- Hands-on technology
- Innovation activities
Rather than avoiding failure, learners are encouraged to experiment, iterate, learn and improve—experiences that closely mirror the realities faced by entrepreneurs.
This practical learning is supported through structured mentorship, enterprise incubation and business guidance that help students move from entrepreneurial intention to entrepreneurial action.
Industry engagement and professional networking further expose students to employers and experienced practitioners while strengthening commercial awareness and adaptability.
According to Dr Khan, it is the integration of these elements—not any single initiative—that creates an environment capable of producing sustainable entrepreneurs.
Measuring What Truly Matters
Despite encouraging developments, Dr Khan believes South Africa still lacks a consistent framework for evaluating entrepreneurship education.
Too often, success is measured by participation rather than impact.
Instead, he argues that entrepreneurship programmes should be evaluated using outcomes that reflect real entrepreneurial success.
Meaningful indicators could include:
- New venture creation rates
- Business survival after two and five years
- Employment generated by graduate-owned businesses
- Revenue growth among supported enterprises
- Access to funding and investment
- Innovation outputs and commercialisation activities
Such measures would provide policymakers, funders and educational institutions with a clearer understanding of which programmes genuinely contribute to economic development.
They would also encourage institutions to prioritise entrepreneurial success rather than programme delivery alone.
Building Businesses, Not Just Qualifications
South Africa undoubtedly needs more entrepreneurs.
More importantly, it needs entrepreneurs capable of building resilient businesses that generate employment, stimulate innovation and contribute to long-term economic growth.
For Dr Khan, the future of entrepreneurship education depends on rethinking how programmes are designed, delivered and evaluated.
The goal should no longer be measured by the number of certificates awarded, but by the number of businesses launched, sustained and successfully grown.
Only then, he argues, will South Africa know whether its investment in entrepreneurship education is creating lasting economic value—or simply producing graduates who understand entrepreneurship without ever putting it into practice.
By Dr Shaheen Khan, Senior Academic & Programme Co-ordinator at REGENT Business School
