Social Entrepreneurship
Overview
THE SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROGRAM
The field of social entrepreneurship is founded on the recognition that social problems require new thinking and new approaches. Social entrepreneurs employ business models, nonprofit models, and hybrids to create new streams of funding and development.
In Bryant’s Social Entrepreneurship concentration, you will study social problems and their sources. You will gain invaluable, real-world experience working directly with organizations to develop innovative solutions in education, health care, immigration, community development and other areas.
FUTURE CAREERS, POST-GRAD OPPORTUNITIES
Bryant’s Social Entrepreneurship concentration will prepare you to make a positive difference, whether you decide to pursue working with a nonprofit organization, help launch a start-up initiative, or establish your own enterprise with a goal of improving society. Combining sociology and other disciplines will allow you to develop a critical perspective embedded in understanding culture, politics, and history.
The concentration allows you to complement many courses of study with the knowledge of what constitutes a social enterprise and how you can address societal ills through social entrepreneurship. You will know how to apply basic research methods in sociology, including research ethics, data analysis, and interpretation. You will be able to apply sociological principles ethically to personal, societal, and organizational issues. You will also be well-prepared for graduate study.
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP FACULTY
Faculty in this concentration – drawn from sociology, marketing, finance, management, legal studies and other departments – all focus on creating new approaches to problem solving. Among these faculty are talented researchers and engaged professors who create learning opportunities that encourage students to be critical thinkers and inspired doers. These dedicated professors connect academic studies with experience where students test their skills and learning in real-world settings.
Requirements
For an 18-credit concentration:
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Social Entrepreneurship Concentration |
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Community Engagement and Service Learning (SOC250SL) |
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Contemporary Social Problems (SOC351) |
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Applied Seminar in Social Entrepreneurship (SOC460SL) |
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Managing the Nonprofit Organization (MGT370) |
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Course Electives (Select two)
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To learn more, please contact:
Sandra Enos, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Sociology
Department of History and Social Sciences
senos@bryant.edu
INTEGRATING SOCIAL ISSUES
Christopher Brida '12
Studied: Social Entrepreneurship, Management, Sociology
For me, studying social entrepreneurship has been about creating a way to learn more about my passion—something Bryant has encouraged.
It was the perfect marriage of my minors: sociology and entrepreneurship. I had the opportunity to complete a directed study in social entrepreneurship under Professor Sandra Enos, Ph.D., studying how business concepts can be applied to solving social issues.
In other entrepreneurship classes, I found ways to integrate social issues - in my entrepreneurial marketing class we worked with a startup medical device company—in an effort to expand my knowledge of social enterprises.
