Influence of demographic factors on the entrepreneurial intentions of university students in Oman

Abstract

This paper aims to examine the relationship of four critical demographic factors, namely, Father’s occupation, Gender, Experience and Level of education on the entrepreneurial intention of Omani university students. The study uses a structured questionnaire to conduct a survey which is administered to the students of Dhofar University. The data collected are analyzed and it is found that there is a high level of intentions among students to start entrepreneurial ventures. Moreover, demographic factors are found to be influencing the entrepreneurial intention. Among the demographic factors experience is found to have the maximum influence on the entrepreneurial interest. The results suggest a need to provide students with on job training for gaining experience along with their educational programs. As an increase in experience will lead to a higher entrepreneurial intention of students and thus the likelyhood of a student becoming an entrepreneur will increase. Furthermore, universities and government should promote entrepreneurship training programs taking into account the Father’s occupation, Gender, Experience and Education Levels of students