Enhancing the Quality of Engineering Undergraduates through Effective Entrepreneurship Skills

The rate of unemployment in Nigeria is increasing everyday with almost two million young graduates entering into the labour markets every year. This is indeed very worrisome! This paper discussed the issues of unemployment among graduates and the need to create an enabling environment for new start-ups. The study used a descriptive research design of survey type in assessing the impacts of entrepreneurship skills on Nigerian engineering students. Sample size consisted of 132 lecturers selected from (public and private) universities and a polytechnic in Ado Ekiti, Nigeria. Questionnaire on Impact of Entrepreneurial Skills on Engineering Students (QIESES) was used to collect data. Test-retest method was used to determine reliability of the instrument, a coefficient of 0.81 was obtained. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as frequency count, mean, standard deviation (SD) and T-test. The study revealed that public and private institution lecturers’ perception has significant effect on the challenges facing the implementation of entrepreneurial education in Nigerian tertiary institutions. It was therefore recommended that tertiary institutions should fulfill its roles as a major catalyst for technological advancement and economic growth. There is need to bring in to teaching, lecturers that are entrepreneurial inclined to develop study programs that enable students’ creativity, initiative thinking and enhances original leadership thinking.