Entrepreneurial orientation in business schools A comparative study of higher education systems in Egypt

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the differences between the four main kinds of business schools in Egypt (private; internationally affiliated; public with local programs; and public with international programs) in terms of perceptions of entrepreneurial orientation (EO). Design/methodology/approach - Data were gathered 212 with a response rate of 55.1 percent from a sample of academics in the four groups of business schools (private; internationally affiliated; public with local programs; and public with international programs) using self-administered questionnaires. Results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted to check EO, construct validity and to identify meaningful factors. MANOVA was performed by using factors identified in the previous step to establish whether any significant differences exist between the four groups. Findings - The results show that differences between the four groups exist in terms of four sub-constructs of EO (research mobilization, unconventionality activities, industry collaboration, and perception of university policies) which successfully predict business school involvement in accreditation and commercialization setting. Practical implications - It is meaningful to conduct a comparative study of EO; the results of this study may be broadly applied to higher education (HE) systems in other countries where strong entrepreneurship has contribute to building a more solid economy. Originality/value - The recent literature has put little effort in understanding the effects of cultural differences among universities and its departments in terms of EO and none in identifying the differences between HE systems on the same topic.