Social Entrepreneurship
Build and Grow Ventures That Do Good and Do Well
The world’s most pressing challenges need more than good intentions. They need bold, skilled leaders. UMW prepares students to design, launch, and lead ventures that create real social and environmental change – and launch careers as founders, investors, and nonprofit leaders.
Paths of Study
Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Business Administration
- Major
- Minor
Explore:
What You’ll Study
Our social entrepreneurship major and minor give students the opportunity to develop skills across the full range of venture creation, from identifying opportunities and building business models to securing funding, managing stakeholders, and measuring social impact. The minor is open to students in all majors with no prerequisites.
Sample course topics include:
- ENTR 366 Social Entrepreneurship
- ENTR 426 Futuronimcs
- ENTR 302 Foundations of Entrepreneurship
- ENTR 376 How to Change the World
For a full list of courses in acting, visit the Academic Catalog.
Why Social Entrepreneurship Matters at UMW
At UMW, students learn to see problems as opportunities and how to build organizations that create lasting value for communities, the environment, and the world. Through project-based learning, real-world case studies, and one-on-one guidance from faculty, students graduate as ethical leaders ready to make change across nonprofits, for-profits, and hybrid organizations.
Program Highlights
A Powerful Business Foundation
Social entrepreneurship at UMW is offered within the College of Business, giving students a solid foundation across all business disciplines, including accounting, finance, marketing, management, information systems, and business law. This base ensures graduates can lead with the operational skills to make any venture sustainable.
A Curriculum That Builds on Itself
Introductory courses build fluency in core business and entrepreneurship concepts, while upper-level seminars dive deep into social impact, stakeholder management, and venture leadership. Students also put their skills to the test in competitions like the Eagle Innovation StartUp Pitch Competition and the College of Business Case Competition, which challenge participants to develop and pitch ideas for new business ventures or team up to analyze real-world business scenarios and present solutions.
Real-World Experience
Many students pursue internships to apply classroom skills in professional settings and explore career interests across nonprofits, startups, and social enterprise sectors. Students may also elect individual studies or choose to study abroad, building an education that extends beyond the classroom and into the communities they aim to serve.
Career Outcomes
Graduates enter a growing field: impact investors now manage more than $1.5 trillion worldwide, and nonprofits employ nearly 13 million Americans – the third largest private workforce in the country. UMW social entrepreneurship graduates are ready for it, pursuing careers as founders, nonprofit leaders, social impact specialists, community leaders, and project managers in areas ranging from environmental sustainability and public health to education and economic development. Many go on to launch their own ventures, driven by a generation that expects meaning from their work.