Graduates urged to start own firms

New business is valuable to the economy

Students are being encouraged to become entrepreneurs when they leave university.

A new company, set up with government support, is to promote business to students and universities.

The National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship is an independent company which will aim, it says, to increase graduates' career options.

It will also try to find good entrepreneurial ideas from graduates and help get them off the ground.

Chancellor Gordon Brown launched the company on Monday.

It was set up jointly by the Department for Education and Skills and the DTI, with funding of £700,000.

'Adventurous spirit'

The body's chief executive is Ian Robertson, a former university lecturer in computer science who went on to launch several successful businesses in the UK and abroad, including one with Sony.

He believes there is a strong entrepreneurial spirit among British people - but it needs re-lighting.

"Unfortunately our adventurous spirit has been dulled. There are a lot of people who have the spirit but we need to galvanise it," he said.

He believes the government's interest in firing up the entrepreneurial spirit stems from looking at the great wealth brought to the USA by young businessmen and women.

"In the USA, about 30% of economic activity has been motivated by graduates who started up their businesses within five years of leaving university.

"That probably includes companies like Microsoft and Google but it shows the value of young entrepreneurs to the economy."

The National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship will carry out research into what stops many of today's graduates from setting up businesses.

It says it wants to help change the culture at universities by showing students business at work in whatever subject they are doing.

Thirdly, they will aim to teach students the skills they need to get a business established, by running courses for hundreds of students.

Mr Robertson says venture capital companies are crying out for good businesses to invest in.

"People are coming forward but they aren't convincing the venture capitalists that they can do it.

"It's not that they don't have the ideas but that they are not properly conditioned to run a business.

"We need a cultural change."