School:Grand Valley State University

Introduction

Grand Valley State University (also known as GVSU), is a public liberal arts university in Allendale, Michigan, United States, west of Grand Rapids. Classes are also offered downtown Grand Rapids on GVSU's Pew Campus. Pew Campus supports programs in Engineering, Education, Nursing and Business. There has been a movement through the past several years to improve the innovation and entrepreneurship landscape on GVSU main campuses. This recent push has gained the momentum of numerous courses, clubs, workshops, competitions and other programs involving innovation and entrepreneurship. The infrastructure is slowly growing to empower a greater number of students with the skills and mindset of an entrepeneur and innovator.

Entrepreneurship & Academics

The Faculty at GVSU integrates innovation and entrepreneurship in their courses through hands on projects and assignments. The classes below empathizes on I&E.

EGR 301 - Product Design

EGR 401 - Advanced Product Design

MKT 450 - Marketing Capstone

MGT 672 - Creativity and Social Entrepreneurship

ENT 150/151 - Entrepreneurial Quest/New Venture Feasibility

ENT 250/251 - Entrepreneurial Finance, Accounting, Marketing and Management

ENT 350/351 - Entrepreneurial Business Plan and Project

HNR 480 - Designing Social Ventures

LIB 323 - Design Thinking to Meet Real World Needs

Events & Community

Not only does Grand Valley State University supports it’s students in innovation and entrepreneurship both in and outside the classroom but the Grand Rapids community also supports it. There are many organizations that offer funding, advising, space and much more for small start up companies and businesses. Below is a list of some community organizations and GVSU programs that support innovation and entrepreneurship.

Community:

StartGarden Speakers/Workshops

GRIN - Grand Rapids Inventors Network

GR Current
Emerge
Xcelerate
Seamless

Campus:

Idea Pitch

CEO Club

MWest

Hack Your Campus

5x5 Night GVSU Editionte

aMDI (Applied Medical Device Institue)

Resources:

Engineering prototyping lab, machine shop, wood shop, Tech Showcase.

A digital studio is coming soon.

Co-op Program

For GVSU’s Engineering program, students must participate in a 3 semester co-op program. The last two years of an Engineer’s education, a student will alternate between co-op (usually at a company) and school every other semester. This allows students to apply what they have learned in real live situations and gain valuable industrial work experience. Typically students will get job offers after graduation with the company they co-oped with. The program also has a two semester long undergraduate senior project.

Not only does all this hands-on experience cause students to develop work ethic/economics and project management skills, it offers a more active participation in innovation and entrepreneurship.