A question that’s frequently asked by those hoping to start their own business is, do I need a college degree to become an entrepreneur? The short and obvious answer is no. You don’t need any specific qualification in order to start your own business because you’re going to be your own boss. There are no entry requirements in order to get an interview and get the job. However, as you might suspect, it’s not quite as simple as all that.
There are many benefits to having a college education if you’re intending to start your own business. You might not need the qualification, but you will need the skills and the knowledge that come along with it. A qualification isn’t necessary for you to get started, but having one, and perhaps more importantly, having those years of study behind you, will make it far more likely that your business will succeed in the long run.
Essential skills
For any venture to be a success, you need to know what you’re doing. Sure, you can outsource essential practices such as accountancy and pay someone to do it for you, but if you know how to do it yourself, you’ll save on costs and keep more control over your business. You’ll also be far less likely to be defrauded or ripped off. Depending on the nature of your business, the same goes for other skills such as sales, marketing, IT and so on
Formal recognition
You should also consider the possibility that holding a formal qualification may be a legal requirement for you to operate in certain areas of business, or in certain territories. At the very least, it will inspire confidence in both your clients and your investors, helping you to find work and source capital.
Many people will tell you that to get ahead in business, you should go straight into the world of work or set up your own venture while still at high school. There’s some truth in this, and yes, many successful entrepreneurs dropped out of college when their businesses started to take off. However, these individuals are the exceptions to the rule, and there’s no reason why you can’t combine real-life business experience with getting a first-class education.
A qualification is for life
Degrees in subjects such as accounting, marketing, organizational leadership and general management are all enormously beneficial to anyone on an entrepreneurial path, and they’re also valuable in employment and in life generally. A qualification is yours for life and is never less than an asset. Bryant & Stratton College (see Bryant & Stratton College on LinkedIn) offers a wide range of diploma, association and degree-level business courses to help you get started and learn the skills you’ll need to set out on your own.
Personal growth
A business-related degree helps you to understand how the corporate world works and gives you confidence and professionalism. As well as letting you understand the basic principles of business, these years of study will let you get to know yourself and your capabilities a lot better. College is a time for personal growth as well as formal study, and you’ll come out a lot better rounded than you went in.
College is also a good place to make connections that could be extremely useful later on. People bond with their fellow students in a way that they don’t quite with colleagues they meet later on. Running your own business can be a lonely path, and college is probably the best opportunity you’ll have to meet those essential contacts who’ll be forging their own business careers in parallel to your own.
Choosing a subject
It is possible to study entrepreneurship as a degree-level subject, giving you a bit of everything you’ll need to know to succeed in business. This includes accountancy, marketing, management, sales and finance. However, if you are going to specialize in one area, then accounting or finance may be the best choice for the budding entrepreneur.
Sure, you’ll probably need to know about marketing, sales and management, but before all that, you’ll be talking to potential investors in order to try to raise the capital that you’ll need to get your business off the ground. To do this, you’ll need to know about investment and finance, what the terminology means and what it refers to, not only in order to be taken seriously but also so that you know what you’re agreeing to. The last thing you want is to build a successful business after years of hard work, only to find that you’d signed half of it away as an ignorant kid just out of high school.
For all these reasons, a college education is strongly recommended for anyone setting up their own business. Ideally, combine it with real-world work and life experience, but while you may make it without an education, getting one is something you’ll never regret.
