Family Business and Entrepreneurship
Overview
It is estimated that family businesses generate about half of the gross domestic product and half of the total wages paid. About 90 percent of all U.S. businesses are family owned or controlled; family businesses and entrepreneurs play an integral role in building our nation and keeping it strong.
What is a Family Business and Entrepreneurship Major?
The best way to predict your future is to create it. That's the thinking behind Saint Joseph's University’s family business and entrepreneurship (FBE) major. This program will help you learn the skills, theories and tools needed to launch your own business or assume responsibilities in a family business.
The curriculum is structured to expose students to family business and entrepreneurship on three levels:
- The first level (firm) covers financial planning, managing organizational change and overcoming family conflict and related issues.
- The second level (industry) goes into the value of innovation, resource allocation and how to gain a competitive advantage.
- The final level (societal) will encourage you to view a business in the context of the greater world and gain an understanding of societal trends and challenges.
What Can You do with a Degree in Family Business and Entrepreneurship?
Family business and entrepreneurship students will leave the program with the tools necessary to act strategically in managing a family firm, launch a new venture or move up the ranks in the corporate world.
Graduates have pursued careers in a wide array of industries, including hospitality, retail, food & beverage, real estate, finance, marketing, information technology and so much more. Career opportunities for family business and entrepreneurship majors are extremely diverse, including:
- Chief Executive Officer (CEO) or C-level management
- Mid-level management
- Finance manager
- Business consultant
- Sales & marketing
- Research & development
- HR & recruiting
How will Saint Joseph’s University Prepare You for a Career in Family Business and Entrepreneurship?
Through the family business and entrepreneurship major, you will learn how to assess risks associated with business management, make responsible decisions and recognize opportunities within and outside your own businesses.
Students are encouraged to join The Initiative for Family Business & Entrepreneurship at Saint Joseph's University, which provides entrepreneurial families the support, guidance and tools necessary to increase long-term competitiveness, ownership prosperity and family unity. You will have the opportunity to work with family-owned businesses in the Philadelphia area and assist them in developing a robust network of family business peers, trusted advisors and tools to promote successful business transitions. The organization equips you with real-world knowledge to succeed as a business owner through interactive workshops, strategy sessions, seminars and speakers series.