The Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) is a comprehensive international survey that assesses the entrepreneurial intentions, activities, and attitudes of higher education students. By capturing the entrepreneurial aspirations and behaviours of students worldwide, GUESSS contributes to the global understanding of student entrepreneurship and provides a platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration among researchers and practitioners in the field.
GUESSS conducts its survey bi-annually, collecting data from a large sample of students from various higher education institutions and disciplines. In Belgium, the University of Antwerp and Ghent University co-coordinate the data gathering process targeted towards Flemish higher education students.
The survey covers a broad range of topics related to student-entrepreneurship, including students' intentions to start their own businesses, their entrepreneurial activities while studying, the support they receive from their educational institutions, and the challenges they encounter. The report produced by the ECOOM student-entrepreneurship research team synthesizes and analyzes the Flemish survey data, presenting key findings in student entrepreneurship in Flanders.
By participating in GUESSS, Flemish higher education institutions (HEIs) demonstrate their commitment to understanding and improving the entrepreneurial ecosystem within their institutions. Furthermore, it facilitates the exchange of best practices and ideas among academic institutions, providing an opportunity to gain insights into the factors influencing entrepreneurial intentions, the effectiveness of entrepreneurship education programs, and the impact of the broader economic and social environment on student entrepreneurial activities.
The Flemish GUESSS report is regarded as a reliable source of information on student entrepreneurship in Flanders. It includes analyses and data visualizations to help stakeholders make informed decisions to develop effective strategies to promote and nurture an entrepreneurial mindset and behaviour among higher education students.
