A Study on the Impact of PBL Learning Experience on Entrepreneurial Opportunity Competencies: Focusing on the Moderating Effect of Learning Satisfaction

With the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, universities are placing greater emphasis on nurturing talents equipped with creativity and problem-solving skills, which is especially critical in entrepreneurship education. Traditional lecture-based teaching methods are being replaced by more active learning approaches where students engage in solving real-world problems. In this context, Problem-Based Learning (PBL) has emerged as an effective instructional strategy for enhancing entrepreneurial opportunity recognition competency. Entrepreneurial opportunity competency refers to an individual's ability to identify opportunities in the environment and transform them into feasible business ideas. As youth entrepreneurship becomes a national strategic priority, strengthening this competency among university students is not only important for individual career development but also for enhancing national competitiveness. This study aims to empirically examine the impact of PBL participation on university students’ entrepreneurial opportunity competency and to investigate whether learning satisfaction moderates this relationship. A survey was conducted from November 1 to December 20, 2024, targeting students enrolled in four-year universities in Gyeonggi Province who had participated in PBL-based courses. A total of 140 valid responses were analyzed. The findings indicate, first, that students’ ability to identify and solve problems through PBL positively influences their entrepreneurial opportunity competency. This suggests that the process of experimenting with diverse problem-solving strategies and accumulating experience during PBL enhances essential entrepreneurial skills. It highlights the need for universities to actively adopt PBL-based curricula and develop a variety of problem-centered educational programs. Second, the moderating effect of learning satisfaction was confirmed: the positive impact of PBL participation on entrepreneurial opportunity competency was stronger among students with higher satisfaction levels. This implies that when learners are more satisfied with the learning process, their sense of achievement and motivation in problem-solving is heightened, thereby further enhancing their entrepreneurial competencies.