undergradly.
Major · Business, Management & Marketing

Build something of your own — the degree that teaches you how businesses start

Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies prepares students to develop, market, and manage a new business venture from the ground up. About 4,070 degrees are awarded each year across 362 colleges, nearly all at the bachelor's level in practice. Five-year median earnings for bachelor's completers run about $62,426, with career destinations spanning general management, executive leadership, and operations.

Schools offering
362
Annual completions
4,070
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$60k

About this major

Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies sits within the business school but orients around a specific question: how do you start and run a business? The CIP definition frames it as preparation for the development, marketing, and management functions associated with owning and operating a business — which in practice means coursework covers new venture creation, startup finance, go-to-market strategy, legal structure for new companies, and the operational mechanics of scaling from zero. Students spend meaningful time on business plan construction and pitch work alongside the theoretical foundations.

The major's scale is modest relative to the broader business family. About 4,070 degrees are awarded per year across 362 colleges — small compared to Business Administration and Management at over 193,000 annual completions. Looking at the top institutions by completions, Grand Canyon University (220 graduates annually), Florida Gulf Coast University (111), and Arizona State University (110) lead the list. Every one of the top ten completers awards bachelor's degrees exclusively in this major, and the five-year earnings gap between associate's ($38,494) and bachelor's ($62,426) completers is sharp.

The career destinations for this major reflect the management track rather than a single defined job title. General and operations managers represent a common landing spot, with a $102,950 median wage and a +4.4% projected growth rate. The broader 'Managers, all other' category sits at $136,550 median. Chief executives ($206,420 median) appear in the careers table and reflect the ceiling for those who go on to build or lead companies — a realistic long-run outcome for some graduates, though not a near-term one.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
General and operations managers $103k +4.4% Bachelor's degree
Managers, all other $137k +4.5% Bachelor's degree
Chief executives $206k +4.3% Bachelor's degree
Business teachers, postsecondary $97k +5.7% Doctoral or professional degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$60k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$38k

Bachelor's

$62k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you are already thinking in terms of what you would build rather than where you would work — if the appeal of the business school is less about landing a corporate role and more about the mechanics of starting something. You may also fit well here if you want the business credential but prefer a curriculum organized around independent decision-making and venture creation rather than organizational management; the degree serves as both a foundation for the startup path and a management-track credential for those who enter the workforce first, with bachelor's completers earning about $62,426 at five years. If you are drawn to general management but want a startup-oriented frame for the coursework, this major gives you that alongside the same career destinations — general managers, operations managers, and executive roles — that a broader business degree would.

Think twice if your real goal is maximizing credential breadth across all business functions, because Business Administration and Management covers those more comprehensively at a much larger scale (193,432 annual completions versus 4,070 here). Think twice also if you are expecting the degree to substitute for actually starting something — the curriculum provides frameworks and preparation, but the outcomes in the career data reflect management employment more than entrepreneurial exits, and the path to the higher-ceiling roles like chief executive ($206,420 median) runs through years of work experience regardless of which business major you choose. And think twice if the associate's path is your plan: the $24,000 annual earnings gap between associate's and bachelor's completers at five years is one of the starker degree-level splits in this concentration.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Grand Canyon University Phoenix, AZ 0 220 220
Florida Gulf Coast University Fort Myers, FL 0 111 111
Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ 0 110 110
The University of Tampa Tampa, FL 0 87 87
Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA 0 82 82
Florida State University Tallahassee, FL 0 81 81
University of North Texas Denton, TX 0 79 79
Lynn University Boca Raton, FL 0 58 58
University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR 0 55 55
Baylor University Waco, TX 0 55 55
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Business Administration and Management, General

193,432 completions/yr

Business/Commerce, General

42,906 completions/yr

Finance, General

42,214 completions/yr

Management Science

7,495 completions/yr

Organizational Leadership

4,923 completions/yr

International Business/Trade/Commerce

4,340 completions/yr

Public Administration

2,139 completions/yr

Project Management

1,001 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do Entrepreneurship majors actually study day-to-day?
Coursework typically covers new venture creation, business plan development, marketing for startups, small business finance, and the operational side of launching and scaling a company. Students work through case studies, pitch competitions, and projects that simulate real business decisions. Upper-division work often includes venture capital fundamentals, legal considerations for new businesses, and sometimes incubator or mentorship components. The CIP definition frames the degree as preparation for development, marketing, and management functions associated with owning and operating a business.
Do I need a bachelor's, or is an associate's enough for Entrepreneurship?
The data shows a significant gap: associate's completers in this field report median five-year earnings of about $38,494, while bachelor's completers report about $62,426 — a difference of roughly $24,000 per year. Looking at the top 10 institutions by completions — Grand Canyon University (220 graduates), Florida Gulf Coast University (111), Arizona State University (110) — every one awards bachelor's degrees exclusively in this major. The primary career destinations, including general and operations managers ($102,950 median wage) and the broader management track, all list a bachelor's as the typical entry credential. An associate's is available but the practical ceiling is meaningfully lower.
What kinds of jobs do Entrepreneurship graduates end up in?
The career table for this major covers the management tier rather than a single defined role. General and operations managers represent a common destination, with a median wage of $102,950 and +4.4% projected growth. The broader 'Managers, all other' category sits at $136,550 median with +4.5% growth — that classification captures the range of leadership roles graduates move into across industries. Chief executives ($206,420 median, +4.3% growth) appear in the table and reflect the ceiling for those who build or run companies over time. It is worth noting that business teachers, postsecondary ($97,270) require a doctoral or professional degree, so that path involves substantially more education after the bachelor's.
Is an Entrepreneurship degree how most successful founders get started?
The degree is not a prerequisite for starting a business — it never has been. What it provides is structured exposure to the frameworks, legal context, and financial mechanics of launching a venture, alongside credentials that transfer to management-track employment if the startup path doesn't work out right away. Most students in this major use it as both: a foundation for the entrepreneurial path and a fallback into general management. The career destinations in the data reflect that dual use — the management and executive titles are real employment outcomes, not just founder aspirations.
How does Entrepreneurship compare to a general Business Administration degree?
Business Administration and Management is the far larger major — about 193,432 completions annually versus 4,070 for Entrepreneurship. The two share significant career overlap: both point toward general management, operations, and executive roles. The difference is orientation. Business Administration covers all the major business functions broadly. Entrepreneurship centers the curriculum on new venture creation, startup operations, and the specific challenges of launching and scaling a company. If you know you want to work inside existing organizations, Business Administration's breadth may serve you better. If the startup or owner-operator path is the draw, this major is more directly focused.
What's a realistic earnings picture after an Entrepreneurship degree?
Five-year median earnings across degree levels sit at about $60,332. For bachelor's completers specifically, the median runs closer to $62,426. Those numbers reflect early-to-mid career outcomes across a range of management roles and, in some cases, self-employment income — which can vary widely and may not be fully captured in earnings surveys. The management ceiling tracked in the career data is real: general and operations managers at $102,950 and the broader manager category at $136,550 are accessible outcomes over time. The honest picture is that early earnings are moderate; the path to higher outcomes depends heavily on what you build or where you land after graduation.