ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETENCES FOR DESIGN STUDENTS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF LATVIAN AND UKRANIAN STUDENTS

The relevance of the research is high as it addresses the intersection of entrepreneurship education and creative industries, focusing on design students in Latvia and Ukraine. It highlights the importance of the perceived entrepreneurial competencies for enhancing the employability and innovation potential of the students of the creative industries, thus impacting the national economy and resilience. The problem of the research lies in the identification and evaluation of entrepreneurial competencies among design students in Latvia and Ukraine. The purpose of this research is to investigate which entrepreneurship competencies are the most important to the students of design-related programs from HEIs of Latvia and Ukraine, as well as to see if there is a difference in the perceived importance of these competencies between the two countries and, finally, how the students perceive the opportunities to start a business and to suggest according to recommendations for the higher education institutions. The research methods - quantitative research design was used to collect data in a survey of students of Latvian and Ukrainian HEIs. The main results revealed which competencies are the most valued and if there are any differences between Latvian and Ukrainian students. It also demonstrated the level of the preparedness of the students to start their own businesses.