Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Impact through innovation.
Requirements:
15 credit hours
experiential capstone
Open to:
all undergraduate students
Disciplinary Focus:
economics; anthropology; sociology; business; science
The minor in social entrepreneurship and Innovation introduces students to an integrated approach for applying entrepreneurial principles, concepts and tools to the world’s biggest social problems. This customizable undergraduate minor offers a practical and experiential approach to making the world a better place, allowing students to focus on an area of interest— from poverty and sustainability to healthcare and literacy—while innovating solutions to real-world challenges.
This minor is proudly administered by the Keough School’s McKenna Center for Human Development and Global Business.
Curriculum
15 Credit Hours
Core Courses
6 Credit Hours
- Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation (3 credits)
- Human-Centered Design for Social Innovation (3 credits)
Electives
6 credit hours
Choose two electives from a broad range of courses in business, sustainability, poverty studies, and marketing. Sample courses include:
- Marketing of Social Initiatives, Causes and Ventures
- Poverty, Development and Business
- Economics of Inequality
- Global Change, Local Responses
- Environment, Food and Society
- Women and Inclusive Leadership
Capstone
3 Credit Hours
The minor concludes with a 3-credit experiential capstone, such as:
- Consulting and Development: Assess, prioritize and creatively solve problems encountered by low-income and other disadvantaged South Bend entrepreneurs, producing tangible deliverables that help clients launch, grow and sustain their ventures.
- Entrepreneurship and Empowerment in South Africa: Consult with entrepreneurs in Cape Town over six weeks as part of structured consulting engagements, determining priorities, selecting problems that can be addressed and building trust with a partner entrepreneur.
- An approved independent research project
“In the same way that Notre Dame, and more specifically this minor, has allowed me to apply business to social issues, I hope to give back to any community that I find myself in over the course of my life.”
Ready to take the next step?
For more information about the minor in social entrepreneurship and innovation, contact Melissa Paulsen at mpaulse1@nd.edu.