In a nutshell
Entrepreneurship education may still lean on masculine ideals, but educators and students are increasingly aware of this — and some are finding ways to broaden the narrative.
For years, studies have shown that people often picture entrepreneurs as male. It’s a subtle association, but one that can have real consequences for who feels like they belong in entrepreneurial spaces and who doesn’t. This paper adds to that conversation by looking closely at how these assumptions show up and are sometimes challenged in the context of entrepreneurship education.
Drawing on interviews and classroom observations at a Dutch university, the study looks at how students and educators engage with the idea that entrepreneurship is often seen as “something men do.” Rather than treating this as an unchangeable fact, many participants recognised the gendered nature of the field, and some were actively working to broaden the picture.
Educators talked about how certain traits — like assertiveness, competitiveness, or being goal-driven — still dominate the way entrepreneurship is framed. But they also described how they try to open things up, for instance by inviting more diverse guest speakers, choosing case studies outside tech or finance, or discussing motivations beyond profit. These small choices in teaching were seen as ways to make more students feel like they could see themselves in entrepreneurial roles.
Students, too, were aware of the stereotypes. Some still associated entrepreneurship with a particular type of person, usually male, confident, independent, but others pointed to moments when that image shifted, often through seeing different kinds of role models or being encouraged to value things like collaboration or social impact.
Publication Date: December 2024
Authors: Sanne Stoker, Ingrid Wakkee, Svetlana Khapova
Institutions: Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences; Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Study Type: Qualitative single-case study
Sample Size: 32 participants (18 students, 14 educators) + classroom observations
Research Focus: Gendered perceptions of entrepreneurship in higher education
Research Methodology: Semi-structured interviews and classroom observation
Main Findings: Gendered assumptions about entrepreneurs are still common in EE settings, but both educators and students are engaging with and sometimes challenging these ideas through teaching approaches, examples, and discussions.
Citation: Stoker, S., Wakkee, I., & Khapova, S. (2024). Educators and students in entrepreneurship education are challenging the “think entrepreneur–think male” paradigm. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research. Link
The classroom setting played a big part. In some observed sessions, educators nudged students to reflect on what counts as “entrepreneurial” and why. Those discussions didn’t erase the dominant narrative, but they created space for alternatives.
That said, change wasn’t straightforward. Some educators weren’t sure how much to push back against the norm. Others worried that highlighting inclusion might be seen as softening the subject. Not every student welcomed a broader definition either, but overall, the study suggests that gendered assumptions are no longer going unchallenged — they’re being noticed, talked about, and sometimes quietly rewritten.
The research doesn’t claim that the problem is solved, though. In fact, many participants expressed uncertainty or mixed feelings, with some experiencing that the masculine image of the entrepreneur is still dominant and influential. Others were optimistic that more inclusive teaching practices and examples could gradually shift perceptions, even if change is slow.
What makes this study stand out is not just its focus on stereotypes, but its attention to how entrepreneurship is actively shaped in the classroom. Rather than framing gender bias as something that only exists “out there,” it shows how educational settings contribute to reinforcing or disrupting these assumptions.
Of course, the findings come from a single university and a relatively small group of people — only 18 students and 14 educators — so we shouldn’t overstate the reach of the results, but the insights are thoughtful and clearly grounded in what participants actually said and did. The paper doesn’t offer a blueprint for fixing gender bias in entrepreneurship education, but it does highlight the everyday decisions about examples, values, and language that help make entrepreneurship education more inclusive.
For educators and programme designers, there is a clear takeaway: it matters who we present as entrepreneurs, what stories we tell, and how we talk about success. These choices can either reinforce old patterns, or help open the door to more people seeing entrepreneurship as a path for them.
This connects to ideas explored in Teaching the Future Before It Arrives and Entrepreneurial Mindset and Education.
