Entrepreneurial Perceptions of Biomedical Sciences Students at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology in Cape Town

entrepreneurial perceptions; entrepreneurship; graduates; South Africa; youth unemployment.

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June 24, 2019

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South Africa is currently faced with high rates of youth unemployment and in recent years the rate of unemployment amongst graduates is on the rise. As a result of the high levels of education and the scientific nature and applicability of the biomedical sciences course in industry, Biomedical Sciences students serve as reservoir for choosing entrepreneurship as a career option, however, Biomedical Sciences students at the conclusion of their studies shun away from setting up their own private laboratory practices and instead they all find comfort in being employed by both public government laboratories and private sector. The primary objective of this study is to investigate the entrepreneurial perceptions of the Biomedical Sciences students at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. In order to accomplish this, a quantitative approach was undertaken whereby survey questionnaires that a set of answers were handed out to the respondents. The target population was 185 Biomedical Sciences students and no sampling was done instead the whole population was used. A pilot survey of ten people was performed. Results based on descriptive statistics using SPSS-software were discussed. The study established that participants have a positive view about entrepreneurship and stresses that institutions of higher learning should by all means necessary encourage students to consider entrepreneurship as a viable career option. The limitation of the study is that the study employed a cross-sectional approach to perceptions by focusing on the views as well as expressions of the Biomedical Sciences students at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.