Evaluating Entrepreneurial Skills Acquisition for Self-Reliance among Business Education Students in Colleges of Education in Kwara State

Abstract

This study evaluated the acquisition of entrepreneurship skills for self-reliance for business education students in Colleges of Education in Kwara State. A descriptive survey study approach was used, with a population of 903 final-year (NCE III) business education students, of which 270 participants were selected. A structured questionnaire called Questionnaire on Evaluating Entrepreneurial Skills for Self-Reliance (QEESSR) was employed as the instrument for the study. Cronbach’s Alpha reliability coefficient calculated 0.8 as the value. Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and the null hypotheses tested at 0.05 levels of significance were employed for the analysis of the collected quantitative information. Results showed that business education students are well endowed with entrepreneurship and management skills such as creativity, innovation, risk management, financial management, business planning, leadership, decision-making, and communication skills to a high extent, while results showed that there was no significant difference between males and females on their self-perception of acquiring entrepreneurship skills. It was concluded that business education students in colleges of education in Kwara State have been well-endowed with entrepreneurship and management skills to make them self-reliance oriented after graduation. It was recommended that, aside utilizing their skills, students should engage in entrepreneurship ventures, while the government and other stakeholders should empower the business education graduates through programs such as financing, business registration, and so forth, to make them self-reliance oriented.