Entrepreneurship, AS

Program code: SBME-AS

Locations: Capital, Gateway, Housatonic, Manchester, Middlesex, Quinebaug Valley

Program Description

This two-year Associate Degree in Entrepreneurship equips students with skills to start, manage, and grow businesses, as well as “intrapreneur” skills for larger organizations or pursue further study in Entrepreneurship. The curriculum covers business planning, financial management, marketing, and legal issues, with hands-on projects like business models, business plans, and pitch competitions to build real-world confidence. 

The program can be completed fully online or with many classes on campus, offering practical training through internships with small businesses. Students also have access to small business centers offered on campus, which offer mentoring, makerspaces, and workshops. 

Program Learning Outcomes

  1. Identify core concepts of entrepreneurial ventures and small business management and their impact on society and the global economy.
  2. Describe the legal and ethical environments for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
  3. Demonstrate analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills applicable to entrepreneurial ventures and small business management.
  4. Demonstrate information literacy through research skills and the use of technology.
  5. Apply effective written and oral communication skills to business situations.

Program Descriptors

This is a career/workforce specialized degree. The Small Business Management and Entrepreneurship students utilize the Gateway Small Business Center, and the Werth Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Housatonic Community College. The Werth Center provides mentoring, workshops, MakerSpace, and a student store/website. In the Launch a Business (BES 295) capstone course, students focus on launching businesses or growing their existing businesses. The BES 295 course is currently taught jointly with Gateway and Housatonic students. This degree program can be completed fully online.

Note: According to the Wall Street Journal on Nov. 29, 2021, “The pandemic has unleashed a historic burst in entrepreneurship and self-employment. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are striking out on their own as consultants, retailers, and small-business owners. The number of unincorporated self-employed workers has risen by 500,000 since the start of the pandemic, Labor Department data show, to 9.44 million. That is the highest total since the financial-crisis year 2008, except for this summer. The total amounts to an increase of 6% in the self-employed, while the overall U.S. employment total remains 3% lower than before the pandemic.”

Degree Requirements

General Education Courses
ENG 1010Composition3
MATH 1001 or higher3-4
Elective ARHX - Arts & Humanities Course (Recommended: ART, ENG, or GRA)3-4
BUSN 2100Business Communication3
Elective SCKX - Scientific Knowledge Course or Elective SCRX - Scientific Reasoning Course3-4
ECON 1001Principles of Macroeconomics3
or ECON 1002 Principles of Microeconomics
CCS 1001College and Career Success3
Program Courses
ACCT 1130Principles of Financial Accounting3
ACCT 1250Accounting Applications I3
BENT 2170Small Business Management and Growth3
BENT 2180Entrepreneurship3
Choose one of the following:3
BENT 2300
Business Plan
BENT 2098
Business Special Topics
BUSN 2195
Business Co-op Internship
BMGT 2200Human Resource Management3
or BMGT 2100 Organizational Behavior
BUSN 2310Business Law I3
BMKT 2010Principles of Marketing3
BMKT Elective3
BUSN 1150Business Software Applications3
or CSA 1111 Spreadsheet Applications
BFIN 1100Personal Finance3
Business Electives - choose from: ACCT, BENT, BFIN, BMGT, BMKT, BUSN, CSA, ECON, HOSP 2244. 26
Total Credits60-63
1

or HOSP 2244 Meetings, Conventions and Special Events Management

2

With approval of program coordinator, course related to starting a business can be selected from outside of the business department.

Total Credits: 60-62