Universities report 53% rise in student start-ups

There has been a rapid rise in the number of companies created by Scottish students and graduates in the past three years.

A new report reveals a 53 per cent increase in the number of start-ups created by students and graduates since 2015.

The Universities Scotland report, Made It Happen, revisits a set of agreements Scotland’s 19 higher education institutions committed to in 2015 which finds there is strong evidence to suggest that entrepreneurship is now embedded in the learning experience.

The report reveals that 94 per cent of Scottish universities provide entrepreneurship training to staff and graduate start-ups, while 89 per cent have embedded enterprise and entrepreneurship within degree programmes.

Andrea Nolan, convener of Universities Scotland and principal of Edinburgh Napier University, said: “Three years ago we set ourselves the challenge to accelerate the growing culture of entrepreneurship in higher education and I’m delighted that all of the indicators suggest we have achieved that.

“University students, graduates and staff have really channelled the ‘Scotland can do’ mentality, which is generating a wave of highly creative, determined and resilient graduates, has rapidly increased start-up rates and will deliver economic benefits to Scotland.

“It’s clear that our university sector is producing more entrepreneurs than ever.

“Their drive and ambition are hugely impressive, with their focus on growth and export, and its particularly rewarding to hear them credit their universities for giving them the platforms and support to get started.

“However, our goal is not that every graduate becomes an entrepreneur, but that every graduate takes a ‘can do’ and enterprising mind-set to their workplace, wherever that might be.”