Fiercely committed to the liberal arts, Carleton doesn’t offer pre-professional programs. But that doesn’t mean Carleton students aren’t equipped for futures in social and for-profit entrepreneurship. Generations alumni success underscore what research shows: the broad training of the liberal arts is exceptional training for leadership in innovation. The ideas presented here represent just one perspective on how a budding entrepreneur might approach the opportunities offered by the Carleton curriculum–alums can testify to the many pathways that support the work.
Some Obvious Choices
Some courses explicitly address innovation, entrepreneurship, and change leadership including:
- AFST 289: Global Blackness and Social Movements
- AMST 231: Contemporary Indigenous Activism
- ECON 263: Economics of Entrepreneurship
- ECON 278: Non-Competitive Pricing and Strategy
- ECON 283: Corporate Finance
- ECON 287: AI: Economic Impacts, Challenges, & Opportunities
- ENTS 210: Environmental Justice
- HIST 126: African American History II
- HIST 226: U.S. Consumer Culture
- HIST 228: Civil Rights and Black Power
- IDSC 121: Entrepreneurship and the Liberal Arts
- POSC 243: Socio-Political Systems and Gender Issues Across Europe
- POSC 358: Comparative Social Movements
- SOAN 287: Afrodescendant Identities in Cuba and Brazil: Afro-Descendant Identities and Society
In addition, you might study off campus in the Cambridge Program where you will learn about the industrial revolution–the birth of the innovation economy. And Academic Civic Engagement courses often connect with local non-profit work. Each of these courses directly consider questions related to the work done by entrepreneurs.
Building Critical Competencies
Narrow focus on course topics, however, misses much of what the curriculum offers in the way of building skills relevant to innovation leaders. Given the role of computer services, entrepreneurs with basic knowledge of computer science are better consumers of digital tools. Similarly, digital foundations (CAMS) and basic statistics are foundational for work with marketing, and expository writing provides invaluable practice to hone communication skills. Students should consider their skill-based strengths and weaknesses and look for courses that address key areas of development.
The Beauty of the Liberal Arts
Even this skills-based perspective fails to exploit the fullness Carleton’s curriculum. Entrepreneurs who want to understand people (employees, clients, customers, suppliers, etc.) value cognitive science, psychology, behavioral economics, and anthropology. Physical products (foods, manufactures, etc.) require an understanding of science. Enterprises that buy, sell, or engage across borders are benefited when their leaders speak foreign languages and have deep understanding of cultural/area studies. Given technology trends toward greater emphasis on audio and visual experiences, systematic study in the arts is valuable to entrepreneurs. The boundaries of politics have expanded to touch nearly every social and business venture, which makes the study of political science and sociology essential. Ultimately, innovation leaders continually engage people pursuing universal human needs–needs that show up throughout the humanities.
You could fill your Carleton years many times over and still only taste a small fraction of what the curriculum has to offer budding change agents. So, it’s a good thing that most of your time at Carleton is spent learning to learn!