Dimensions and Components of the Experience of “Entrepreneurship in School”: A Meta-Synthesis of Related Studies

Abstract

This study aimed to systematically identify and synthesize the dimensions and components of the “entrepreneurial experience in school” and to develop a comprehensive framework explaining the factors contributing to the formation and enhancement of students’ entrepreneurial capacities. A meta-synthesis design was employed based on Erwin’s six-stage model. The study population comprised 186 scholarly articles addressing education and entrepreneurship, primarily published in domestic and international databases between 2019 and 2024. Following screening according to predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, including direct relevance to entrepreneurship experiences in school, methodological quality, and field-based evidence, 12 articles were retained for final analysis. Data were analyzed through qualitative content analysis using open, axial, and selective coding. Credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability were addressed through self-review, rich description, peer coding by two specialists, and recoding by four independent evaluators. Scott’s method was additionally employed to assess coding agreement. The synthesis indicated that entrepreneurial experiences in school are shaped by four interrelated dimensions: personal capacities, educational conditions, environmental support, and exclusive experiences, encompassing 23 subsidiary themes. Inferentially, the findings demonstrated that students’ entrepreneurial development cannot be explained solely by formal entrepreneurship education or individual characteristics. Rather, personal traits, beliefs, motivation, and soft skills become entrepreneurial capacities when they interact with appropriate curricula, experiential learning opportunities, supportive school and family environments, access to resources and networks, and opportunities to encounter authentic successes, failures, responsibilities, and market-related challenges. Entrepreneurship in school therefore emerges as a multidimensional, interactive, and context-dependent developmental process. Effective entrepreneurship development in schools requires flexible curricula responsive to individual differences, creative and experiential teaching approaches, systematic development of soft skills, and stronger collaboration among schools, families, communities, industry, and businesses. Because students differ in their personal entrepreneurial capacities, entrepreneurship programs should not be designed as uniform, universally mandatory interventions. Curriculum planners should instead provide differentiated and potentially elective opportunities through which students can progressively explore, experience, and develop entrepreneurial competencies.