This article reports on extended research into the use of enquiry-based learning (EBL) and problem-based learning (PBL) in a human resource management undergraduate programme. The authors have collected and analysed qualitative and quantitative data over a three-year period, some of which have been previously reported (Reynolds and Benmore, 2003,…

Academic researchers are increasingly recognizing the potential of graduates to influence management decisions in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This paper focuses on a detailed qualitative study which looked at graduates who had obtained employment in SMEs in the East Anglia region of England. It examines the skills, competences and…

In contemporary China, there are two far-reaching developments that impact directly on graduate employment: (a) a highly entrepreneurial and rapidly growing small business sector and (b) a rapidly expanding higher education sector. Paradoxically, while the small business sector continues to suffer from acute skills shortages, new graduates are…

Using the UK Labour Force Survey, this paper considers whether graduate employment is more important in the small and medium-size enterprise (SME) sector in Northern Ireland than in other regions of the UK. The authors disaggregate their analysis by gender, occupation and industry to provide a detailed breakdown. The issue of whether graduates are…

In the context of the UK government's target of 50% participation by young people in higher education, issues relating to the use of graduates in firms assume renewed significance. Increasing attention is paid to the potential for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to absorb a larger number of new graduates. With reference to the…

The authors were the principals in the evaluation of the Prince's Trust's Young People's Business Start-up Programme, 1994?1999, as it operated nationally in the UK and in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. In this paper they report the methodologies used in the evaluation and the key findings. They then use their reflections on both…

The performance of distant students in a simulation exercise for a Small Business Management (SBM) course was compared with that of internal students and the demographic and psychological variables associated with the performance of each student group were examined. Distant students matched or exceeded the performance of internal students in…

Worldwide, innovation policy is perceived to be at the heart of economic growth and global competitiveness, and nations invest vast amounts of money to give effect to innovation. Higher education institutions, in partnership with industry, are expected to play a key role in supporting the national system of innovation and developing the nation's…

This article shows how and why particular higher education?industry research and development networks articulate with the South African telecommunications sector. The range of competing and complementary data telecommunications technologies available in the South African market provide varying opportunities for enterprises to engage in R&D. Two…

Drexel University has maintained a leadership role in academic technology by choosing technology initiatives wisely, timing them effectively and ensuring that they have the greatest value to the community at large while being affordable. Drexel has leveraged vendor relationships to help accomplish these initiatives, and has shared its expertise…

Academics in the field of entrepreneurship education are increasingly aware that, while class-based knowledge input is a vital component of learning, the traditional lecture-based, didactic methods of teaching and learning alone are insufficient. In an attempt to achieve 'real, active learning' various interactive techniques have been developed,…

The social, economic and political systems of former communist countries have faced considerable changes since the late 1980s. Most countries in Eastern and Central Europe have undergone their own individual brand of transition from a centrally planned, command system to a more or less liberalized, Western-style market economy. Many observers…

This article discusses the importance for technology transfer offices of sound media and government relations strategies. It reports the results of a nationwide electronic survey in the USA and interviews with technology transfer managers on how they handle public relations issues in their offices. Strengths and weaknesses of their communication …

This article presents the findings of a study catalysed by the outcomes of research into the attitudes and perceptions of UK undergraduate students of tourism management in relation to the need for foreign language skills, reported and discussed in a previous paper in this journal (Leslie et al, 2002). While that earlier study paid some attention…

Technology and knowledge transfer from universities to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is seen as one way to strengthen a region's innovation capability. But what if SMEs do not want to play along? Looking back at some 10 years' experience of supporting SMEs, the authors describe in detail the 'Active Knowledge Transfer' programme, which…