President's Dream Colloquium on Entrepreneurship

The seminar will be comprised of six modules:

• Entrepreneurial Thinking Within and Across Contexts
• Financing Entrepreneurship
• Technological Entrepreneurship
• Social Entrepreneurship
• Cultural Entrepreneurship
• Entrepreneurship in Aboriginal Communities

Each of these modules will be comprised of two sessions.

• The first session of each module is an in-class seminar for registered students (graduate and senior undergraduate) which is led by SFU members who are widely published and passionate about the topic area covered. In these sessions, the academics will introduce the topic area, explain its theoretical and practical significance and explore the primary research questions which drive that area of inquiry. Academic articles will be assigned to seminar participants to facilitate and add depth and rigour to these discussions.
  
• The second session of each module will be a free public lecture which features a guest speaker of international renown who is a leading academic and / or thought leader in the subject area. These speakers will engage the audience in an interactive session that will be open to members of the university community and the general public.

As a final assignment, seminar registrants will be required to work in teams of 3–4 students to identify and describe the challenges and opportunities associated with entrepreneurship in one or more of the entrepreneurial domains covered in the seminar (i.e. technological, social, cultural, and aboriginal). These projects will be presented to the University and invited guests in a session at the end of the term.

The requirements for this course will comprise two sets of assignments:

1. Reading reflection papers (6 papers, 5% each, total=30%). For each of the topics (e.g., Financing for entrepreneurs; Cultural entrepreneurship), write a 600-900 word reflection on the assigned readings. In the reflection paper, you will explore what you think are some of the most interesting and powerful ideas from the assigned readings, discuss why you think they are interesting or powerful, and identify questions they lead you to ask with respect to the week's topic.
2. Speaker reflection papers (6 papers, 5% each, total=30%). Prior to each guest speaker, write a 200-300 word reflection on how their ideas or accomplishments intersect with your own interests. In reading about the guest speaker, what have they achieved or written about that makes them interesting to you? How do those ideas or accomplishments relate to your own ideas, accomplishments, aims, beliefs and values?

Students may select between two different final projects.  

Final Project Option 1: Opportunity Development Project (25%)

Individually, or in teams of 2 or 3, students will research the feasibility of an entrepreneurial opportunity they have discovered. The opportunity may correspond to one or more of the domains covered in the course (e.g. Commercial, Technological, Cultural, Social, Indigenous).

Each student/team will produce a research report on their opportunity. These reports should answer the following questions regarding the opportunity ( These answers should be based both upon desk research and interviews with at least 2 experts and 2 potential clients).

• What is your product or service?  Briefly describe what it is you sell / provide.
• Who is the market? Discuss who your clients will be, how you will add value to them, and how large of a market they represent. 
• Will you make money? For what will you charge? How will you collect the money?
• What are the estimated (rough) costs of producing / delivering and marketing the product or service?
• How will you secure the needed financial resources?
• Who are your (direct / indirect, current / potential) competitors? Briefly discuss who they are and what they have accomplished?

Along with the report, each individual / team should prepare as appropriate; 1) a 3D prototype of your product OR a short video illustrating your service and, a 2) Graphical display board to provide relevant information about the product/service.

These projects will be jointly graded by 2 of the instructors from the course.

At the end of the semester, students will present their project to members of the public (See Week 13, Below).

Final Project Option 2: Analytic or Creative Expression (25%)

Each student will produce a 1500-word manuscript or equivalent in other media, including but not limited to painting, video, audio, multimedia, dance, or other modes that focus on a topic associated with entrepreneurship. A faculty member with expertise in their topic area or mode of media will be assigned to supervise each project. Students submit a proposal for their idea to their assigned faculty member midway through the semester. Students can work individually or in groups, with the specific project scope being negotiated with faculty members depending on the size and composition of the group. At the end of the semester, students will present, display or screen their project to members of the public (See Week 13, Below).

Week 13 Final Presentation (15%)

Individuals/teams will present their final projects to the general public, the instructors and invited guests. The default format for this presentation is a trade show/fair type exhibit with display boards. Other formats may be permitted upon approval from the course co-ordinator (Eric Gedajlovic) and supervising instructor (in the case of "Option 2").