COOPERATION BETWEEN SMEs AND HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS - EFFECTIVE TOOL FOR ENTREPRENEURIAL EDUCATION

All over the world, large corporations are forced to resize their structures, to redesign their strategies in order to face accelerated competition and to survive in a highly unstable environment. In the same time, the rapid changes become important sources of opportunities leading to an increase of start-up companies, strengthening SMSs’ image of main job creator in the economy. In this dynamic context, entrepreneurial education and training has a major role in achieving desired behavioural outcomes, especially in terms of reinforcing ability to respond to different situations, based on creativity, innovation, autonomy, self-direction and self-expression. As stated in the Final Report regarding promotion of SMEs competitiveness: “at higher education level, the primary purpose of entrepreneurship education should be to develop entrepreneurial capacities and mindsets” (European Commission, 2008, p.7). As pointed out by specialists: “today’s graduate value is in the ability to manage and apply knowledge in action and in an entrepreneurial context, and not only in the ability to acquire and assimilate knowledge” (Collins & all, 2004, p.454). This paper advocates the role and importance of cooperation between higher education institutions (HEI) and SMSs sector, its potential to stimulate entrepreneurial mindsets among students. It is an empirical contribution that seeks to link entrepreneurial education within HEI with the SMEs sector, to analyze the reciprocal benefits of cooperation between both parties. A comprehensive literature review and a tructured evaluation of current knowledge on this topic are carried out. Appropriate forms of cooperation and their effectiveness are also pointed out. Main challenges for the Romanian higher education system and ways to incorporate appropriate forms of cooperation with SMSs are highlighted, in order to transform entrepreneurial education into a major source of graduates that are job creators not job “hunters”, as an indispensable condition to strengthen SMSs sector and Romania’s market based economy.