ADMN-3420H Entrepreneurship
Dean Howley, Business Administration (B.B.A) 

Entrepreneurship (ADMN-3420H) focuses on the key issues and questions surrounding entrepreneurship. 

Taught by Professor Dean Howley ‘06 (Peter Gzowski College), the course is designed to provide students with a deeper understanding of entrepreneurship and the skills necessary to succeed as an entrepreneur. Through case studies, lectures, and hands-on activities, students develop their knowledge of key concepts such as idea generation, opportunity recognition, business planning, and financial management.  

“The ultimate goal of this course is for students to come away with a better understanding of the entrepreneurial experience, both from an academic and practical perspective,” says Prof. Howley. “For the first perspective, we examine the theoretical underpinnings of entrepreneurship through various lenses, like sociology, psychology, and economics. For the latter, it is important for students to experience what it feels like to be an entrepreneur so that they can connect the theory we discuss in class to the “real world”, which is where entrepreneurship happens.” 

The $100 Startup

Students in this year’s ADMN-3420H course were also given the opportunity to showcase what they’ve learned through an experiential assignment called the $100 Startup – a project designed by Prof. Howley.  

“The $100 Startup exercise gives students that practical perspective by requiring groups composed of five students to each invest $20 of their own money to start and operate a business for one month,” said Howley. “It is active and experiential learning that they are asked to reflect upon and connect to course concepts, which in the end gives them a much more informed understanding of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship. It also gives them an opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they learn as business students, while fostering creativity, problem solving, and friendly competition.” 

By participating in the $100 Startup, students are not only gaining hands-on experience in entrepreneurship, but they are also supporting their fellow students in need. Twenty-five percent of all proceeds made over the month were donated to the Trent Fund - a non-profit organization that provides emergency assistance to students. 

AI ShirtBuddies

For Business Administration students Allison Adam (Champlain College) and Will Prentice (Catharine Parr Traill College), the project presented an opportunity to try their hand at something new using innovative tech: AI-generated t-shirts.  

With the help of fellow classmates, Allison and Will put together a website that uses artificial intelligence and three user-submitted words to generate a customized, one-of-a-kind image that will be printed on two t-shirts - never to be replicated. They named the business ShirtBuddies. 

"Your shirt buddy is essentially going to be a stranger – so you’re going to be paired up with a random customer – and your three words, combined with their three words, are going to make a unique image," she explained. "You might know them or you might not know them – so it could be a stranger or it might be someone you know.” 

Through projects like this, students explore the role of entrepreneurship in society, examining its impact on economic growth, job creation, and innovation. The project provides students like Allison and Will with an understanding of the challenges facing entrepreneurs and the strategies that can be used to overcome them. 

Real experience, real results

According to Prof. Howley, the $100 Startup offers a realistic look into the experience of entrepreneurship, which is often romanticized in the media and popular culture. By experiencing the highs and lows, successes and failures, students can determine whether entrepreneurship is a path they wish to pursue, and some may be motivated to pursue it even if they hadn't previously considered it. For others, the exercise may serve as a reality check, helping them realize that entrepreneurship isn't something they want to pursue at this time.  

Regardless of their professional intentions, however, the exercise provides an opportunity to practice entrepreneurial thinking, including opportunity recognition, creativity, problem-solving, risk-assessment, and other valuable skills applicable to any career trajectory, whether employed or self-employed. 

Learn more about the Trent School of Business and more courses like ADMN-3420H.