Title: Entrepreneurial university ecosystems: does the country's level of development differently affect the students entrepreneurial intention? A perspective from public universities in Spain and Mexico

Authors: Lizette Huezo-Ponce; Ana María Montes-Merino; Paola Isabel Rodríguez-Gutiérrez; Ma. Margarita Orozco-Gómez

Addresses: Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico ' Universidad de Jaén, Jaén, Spain ' Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, Mexico ' Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico

Abstract: Entrepreneurial ecosystems in universities are a trusted framework to analyse entrepreneurship as a viable career option, that can promote recovery from a crisis scenario. Particularly, after COVID-19 pandemic, the current situation demands intensifying all the agents involved to contribute to the recovery of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. However, public universities are vital institutions that provide education in all disciplines and receive young people interested in learning. Thus, one question comes to mind when the unit of analysis is the public university in a developed country. Does the country's level of development differently affect the student's entrepreneurial intention in public universities? This research frames a global sample of 436 students, 220 (Spain) and 216 (Mexico), students suitable for structural equation modelling. Our findings suggest a significant relationship between entrepreneurial university ecosystems and the entrepreneurial intention of students in public universities. Moreover the entrepreneurial university ecosystem influences student's entrepreneurial intention through attitude and self-efficacy. On the contrary, the different level of development across studied countries does not affect the university students' entrepreneurial intention. It contributes to understanding the entrepreneurial contexts for public universities and brings new insights into the classification of entrepreneurial university ecosystems.

Keywords: entrepreneurial university ecosystems; European university; entrepreneurial intention; public university; Spanish university.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEED.2024.136208

International Journal of Education Economics and Development, 2024 Vol.15 No.1/2, pp.145 - 170

Received: 04 Mar 2022
Accepted: 22 Jul 2022
Published online: 22 Jan 2024 *

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