Over 1,000 engineering and computing students at Missouri S&T began their studies at S&T last semester with a focus on a topic university leaders say will play a growing role in their academic and professional careers — entrepreneurship. 
 
“Over the past few years, we have made strategic improvements to FE 1100: Study and Careers in Engineering and Computing, which is an entry-point course for first-year engineering and computing students,” says Dr. Francisca Oboh-Ikuenobe, associate dean for academic affairs for S&T’s College of Engineering and Computing. “While this course has always been beneficial, we saw an opportunity to enhance it further by infusing components of an entrepreneurial mindset into the curriculum.” 
 
Oboh-Ikuenobe says that, similar to years past, students in the course still learn about and attend events focused on academic success, career opportunities and professionalism, professional organizations for specific majors, wellness and social well-being.  
 
But now, entrepreneurship is also front and center in the curriculum. 
 
She says something that helped jumpstart this change was that in October 2023, S&T became a member of the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) — an organization that partners with universities to develop engineers who possess an entrepreneurial mindset and the ability to create personal, economic and societal value through a lifetime of meaningful work. 
 
“Being a partner with KEEN allows Missouri S&T to have so many new resources at our fingertips,” Oboh-Ikuenobe says. “Their framework emphasizes the three C’s — curiosity, connections and creating value — and our students applied these concepts to course activities.” 
 
Dr. Rachel Kohman, assistant dean of entrepreneurship education for S&T’s Kummer College of Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development, says this type of curriculum is a natural fit for aspiring engineers and computer scientists. 
 
“Students at Missouri S&T are brilliant,” she says. “And by providing them with this entrepreneurial education early in their academic careers, they can gain a better understanding of how to use that brilliance to create value through their work and have a significant impact on society.” 
 
Kohman says students began FE 1100 in sections with about 100 of their peers. In the final few weeks, they were divided into smaller sections of about 20 students, where they worked with volunteer facilitators — faculty members, graduate students, staff or community members — and took deep dives into KEEN concepts. 
 
These class sessions covered painstorming, or identifying and considering how to solve an organization’s pain points; bisociation, or finding connections between topics or concepts that are not usually considered related; and how to consider ethical issues with an entrepreneurial mindset. 
 
For Hossein Libre, a first-year ceramic engineering student from Rolla, painstorming was one of the most intriguing and valuable topics discussed. 
 
“Instead of the traditional approach of brainstorming solutions to a problem, we worked backward, identifying pain points and designing solutions around them,” he says. “One of the examples we explored was how the inconveniences of traditional coffee machines — like cleaning the filter, replacing the water or not being able to brew the desired amount — led to the creation of the Keurig. This approach helped me think differently about problem-solving.” 
 
Adrian Petroni, a first-year student in electrical engineering and economics from Wildwood, Missouri, says he appreciated the opportunity to express creativity during the activities. 
 
“Speaking with my peers to solve an absurd problem like a yeti-themed pool was a whimsical creative outlet and opened my eyes to the idea that engineering was not always stern and serious work but covered all aspects of design,” he says. “Through that, KEEN provided a bridge between ideation and our engineering skills — and how we could create value for others through that.”  

About Missouri S&T

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students located in Rolla, Missouri. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System, Missouri S&T offers over 100 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top public universities for salary impact, according to the Wall Street Journal. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit  www.mst.edu.