Research Programme for Ethnic Minority Graduate International Entrepreneurs

Ethnic Minority Graduate International Entrepreneurs: Nature and scale of businesses and the role of human and international social capital in the development and maintenance of international businesses

British citizens of non-White ethnic minority backgrounds, particularly Indian and Chinese, are over-represented in higher education and are concentrated in a cluster of disciplines (IT, Maths, Science, Engineering and Technology, Law, Business Studies, Medicine and Dentistry). The high entrepreneurial activities and ambitions of British ethnic minorities, combined with enhanced intellectual capital acquired by younger generations, raises the possibility that they could engage in high value added businesses and play a significant part in the UK’s response to globalisation.

This small scale, qualitative research study seeks to examine the nature and extent of British ethnic minority nascent and current graduate international small and medium enterprise. It will explore its existing and potential contribution to the UK economy, in particular the innovative commercialisation of intellectual capital developed by attending Higher Education Institutions. It will specially focus on the role, if any, that the bonding and bridging international social capital of ethnic minorities plays in facilitating the internationalisation of business. The research aims to address the following questions:

1.Characteristics: What are the characteristics of potential and existing ethnic minority graduate international businesses and how have these benefited from HEIs’ third stream activity?

2.Networks: What role do various social networks play in facilitating current and potential international trade among ethnic minority graduate entrepreneurs and what are the policy and practice implications for ethnic minorities, the wider business population, British/overseas student networks and international collaboration between HEIs ?

3.Business support: What are the business support needs of potential and existing international ethnic minority graduate entrepreneurs and how are these met through HEI, public and private sector provision? Do they have distinctive needs that are not met by mainstream provision, and if so, to what extent does provision need to be differentiated? What are the implications for graduate entrepreneurship education curricula and transnational education activity?

This one year project is co-funded by the ESRC, the Department for Trade and Industry and the Department for Education and Skills. It will be carried out under secondment to the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship, de Montfort University, Leicester.

Dr Mascarenhas-Keyes is a government social researcher with experience of working in the Department for Education and Skills, Higher Education Directorate and the Small Business Service, Department for Trade & Industry. She has previously taught in HE and undertaken research on ethnic minorities and internationalisation.