A1 Journal article – refereed
Setting New Standards for Homo Academicus: Entrepreneurial University Graduates on the EU Agenda
List of Authors: Laalo Hanna, Kinnari Heikki, Silvennoinen Heikki
Publisher: Routledge
Publication year: 2019
Journal: European Education
eISSN: 1944-7086
Abstract
In this article, we examine how the ideal university graduate is constructed in the European Commission’s documents on entrepreneurship education (EE). Our analysis illustrates how persuasive policy language determines the standards for educating entrepreneurial graduates to optimally meet the needs of the liberal market economy. We argue that the policy discourse on EE reformulates the idea of being academically educated. In the context of building the European knowledge economy, EE has become a significant theme that establishes neoliberal ideals, redefines the values of European university education, and generates instrumental and one-dimensional understanding of the purpose of university education.