The Role of Self-Directed Learning in Enhancing Entrepreneurial Learning of Students in Higher Education Institutions

In recent years, entrepreneurial learning in higher education institutions has been promoted and supported to help students become job creators rather than job seekers. The main purpose of entrepreneurial learning is to develop entrepreneurial competencies in terms of knowledge, skills, and attitudes to attain the entrepreneurial goal of new value creation. This value extends beyond only economic value and job creation; it can, therefore, also benefit students who do not become entrepreneurs but who choose to think entrepreneurially. However, an enduring problem is ensuring that the entrepreneurial learning process is interactive, effective, and meaningful to the students. Correspondingly, self-directed learning (SDL) can be used in higher education to enhance entrepreneurial learning. This paper discusses the analyses of the role and importance of self-directed learning in the process of entrepreneurial learning for students in higher education institutions, informed by an exploratory systematic literature review. The findings reveal that SDL can play an important role in enhancing entrepreneurial learning by initiating the learning process to develop students’ entrepreneurial skills, mindset, motivation, creativity, and innovation, which serve as competencies for success as entrepreneurial thinkers. Based on the findings, the author concludes that SDL plays an important role in enhancing entrepreneurial learning in higher education institutions. Adopting SDL as a key strategy for teaching and learning in higher education can improve the effectiveness of entrepreneurial learning and help develop students into entrepreneurial thinkers. The practical implications are that the use of SDL in entrepreneurial learning can develop a spirit of creativity, create value on several levels, and empower students to become job creators instead of job seekers as higher education institutions prepare them for life after graduation.