Technopreneurial Skills Development in Higher Education: Exploring the Influence of Gender and Educational Level

In today's era, possessing adequate technological and entrepreneurial skills is crucial for the academic and professional success of all individuals. Higher education institutions are playing a vital role in equipping students with the necessary skills to thrive in today's technological age. However, there is a dearth of empirical studies that examine how educational level and gender affect the technopreneurial skills of university students. Thus, the study investigates the impact of gender disparities and education levels on higher education students' technopreneurial skills in the 21st century. The research utilized quantitative design methods, incorporating an online survey administered via Google Forms to collect data from two hundred (N=200) through a diverse sample of university students. Descriptive and t-test analyses were conducted to examine whether there were significant differences in technopreneurial skills according to education levels and genders. The results showed students’ skills ranged from average to higher levels, and also slight differences were observed, but they were not statistically significant based on both gender and educational levels. The findings of the study add to the increasing research on gender and 21st-century technopreneurial skills in higher education institutions. They highlight the importance of continuous efforts to establish inclusive and equitable 21st-century technopreneurial skills for higher education students' surroundings. To improve the entrepreneurial skills of higher education institutions, educators, researchers, policymakers, and institutions need to focus on 21st-century skill strategies at all education levels. They should also customize their entrepreneurial skills to design programs that cater to the diverse development of the higher education curriculum in technopreneurial skills.