Over 32.5% Indian college students are nascent entrepreneurs: Report

More than 32.5 per cent of Indian students in Indian universities are "nascent entrepreneurs" and actively engaged in starting ir businesses, a statement from IIT Mandi said on Monday.

As per key findings of Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students' Survey (GUESSS) India 2023 Report, entrepreneurs actively are likely to be spurred by various policy initiatives in India, a statement issued here by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi on Monday said.

report highlighting rising entrepreneurial aspirations, career shifts to entrepreneurship and positive university entrepreneurship climate in India was led by Associate Professor, School of Management, (IIT Mandi) Dr Puran Singh and co-authored by Dharmender K Yav, National Team Member and Doctoral Candidate, School of Management at IIT Mandi.

statement said that GUESSS is largest global research project that involves a comprehensive survey on student entrepreneurs worldwide covering 57 countries and project aims to study entrepreneurial spirit - intentions and activities of students across globe.

Fourteen per cent of Indian students plan to become founders immediately after gruation compared to global average of 15.7 per cent while 31.4 per cent of students intend to pursue entrepreneurship five years after gruating, compared to a global average of 30 per cent, survey said.

GUESSS India 2023 Survey conducted during November 2023-February 2024 which is maiden survey of Indian students' entrepreneurial spirit received 13,896 student responses enrolled in hundreds of higher education institutions across India, statement ded.

survey offers a detailed understanding of entrepreneurial ambitions and strong representation of Indian students and provides a robust foundation for assessing student entrepreneurship landscape in India.

Elaborating on key findings of this report, Dr Puran Singh said, "We are alrey third largest start-up ecosystem in world with largest youth population and harnessing youth's entrepreneurial potential would be pivotal to country's growth." He said that India has a strong entrepreneurial intent and robust pipeline of nascent ventures, signals immense potential.

Indian students show highest entrepreneurial intent globally, with an average score of 4.6 on a 7-point scale, significantly higher than global average of 3.7 while involvement of 38 per cent in venture creation with 33 per cent in nascent stage, India was highest among global peers, report released on October 18, said.