This fall, students at Palo Alto University will be able to sign up for the first of three online courses of the school's Psychology of Entrepreneurship Certificate Program.
The new program, which is designed for business leaders, students, and would-be entrepreneurs "anywhere in the world," will give students an in-depth look at the entrepreneurial process and the key role personal psychology plays in it, school offcials announced.
"We didn't find another that emphasized psychology across the entire program," Jerry Porras, founder of the program, said in a statement. "We believe this makes our program unique -- literally unique -- in the growing field of behavioral economics. It's groundbreaking. There's nothing else like it around."
What sets this program apart from others is that it does not just focus on business and entrepreneurial principles alone, Porras said.
Entrepreneurs themselves lend credence to the crucial role of human behavior in entrepreneurial undertakings, Porras added, are entrepreneurs themselves.
"When you talk to entrepreneurs who've been successful, they attribute a huge portion of their success to the human side of the process. How entrepreneurs regulate their own temperaments, their ability to motivate people, the interpersonal dynamics of relationship building, these are big determinants in their success. Research supports all of this. And yet, when you go look at entrepreneurship programs elsewhere, they don't emphasize that," Porras said.
The first course, titled "Entrepreneur as a Person: Leadership & the Psychology of Entrepreneurship," will help students develop skills in human resources management, leadership, and organizational behavior within the context of launching and running a new organization.
Students must also take the following courses: "Your Product, the Consumer's Mind, and Entrepreneurial Marketing" and "The Entrepreneurial Process: From Coffee House to Business Plan to IPO" to complete the program and earn a certificate.
