


































103-Article Text-327-3-11-20200511


 
 

 

VOL. 9, NO. 1 
SPRING 2020 

 

The Student Entrepreneurial Journey 
Motivations, Entrepreneurial Engagements and Challenges among 
Recent Graduates of Visual Arts Academic Programs in Ghana 

Keren Naa Abeka Arthur 
University of Cape Coast 

Albert Kwame Arthur 
University of Education, Winneba 

ABSTRACT: This paper explores the stories of student entrepreneurs in order to 
understand 1) their motivation for pursuing student entrepreneurship, 2) their 
entrepreneurial engagements, and 3) their entrepreneurial challenges including how 
they balance entrepreneurship and academic work. The study uses a qualitative 
research design involving a total of twenty graduates of visual arts academic 
programs in Ghana; respondents were sampled using a purposive and snowball 
approach. Data collection was carried out with the help of a semi-structured interview 
guide and data analysis was conducted using a thematic analysis approach. Findings 
show that most respondents chose to pursue entrepreneurship while studying as 
early as senior high school level as an avenue for addressing personal financial 
constraints. Results indicated a preference for entrepreneurial activities in multiple 
art related industries for most respondents with sectors such as graphic 
communication design and t-shirt printing dominating. Further, responses show that 
respondents faced financial, operational, marketing, and managerial challenges in 
their entrepreneurial pursuits. It is concluded that students in our sample capitalize 
on the skills they acquire as part of their education to pursue predominantly craft 
entrepreneurship as a survival strategy. Their entrepreneurial engagements mostly 
focus on opportunities in their field of specialization with general and context specific 
challenges confronting them. It is recommended that policy makers in academia, 
industry, and government work together towards positioning student entrepreneurs 
to be growth oriented even when choosing the craft route to entrepreneurship. 
KEYWORDS: Entrepreneurial journey, tertiary education, graduates, visual arts 



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Entrepreneurship has been considered an important factor in national development for decades 
(UNCTAD 2004; Smith 2010). In Ghana, there is evidence to show that while the economy 
witnessed benefits such as improved unemployment rates due to entrepreneurship, the lives of 
individuals have transformed positively as they engage in entrepreneurship activities (Tsikata 
2001; Bani 2003; Quaidoo 2018; Arthur & Adom 2019). To this end, the government of Ghana 
continues to promote entrepreneurship, especially among the youth with the introduction of 
initiatives such as the Campus Business Pitch (Tanko 2019) and the Tertiary Students’ 
Entrepreneurship Initiative (Mohammed 2019) recently introduced. According to Houser 
(2014, cited in Bergmann, Hundt & Sternberg 2016), student entrepreneurial activities create a 
platform for an understanding of one’s entrepreneurial capabilities. Thus, it could be argued 
that the student entrepreneur gains entrepreneurial learning experiences that position him or 
her to better navigate full-time entrepreneurship at a future date. Rao (2014, cited in Fatoki, 
2014) also argues that the stories of some successful entrepreneurs today started on university 
campuses thereby emphasizing the role that the university could play as an incubator for 
nurturing entrepreneurial ideas. These arguments provide justification for investigations into 
student entrepreneurial activities which cuts across varied sectors, including the arts. According 
to Philips (2010), the contributions of arts entrepreneurs to economic development are unique 
due to the level of creativity involved in what they do, hence the need for them to be supported 
as nations work towards creating what he calls the “creative city”.  

Despite the aforementioned benefits, the concept of student entrepreneurship is still 
underdeveloped with studies currently focused on understanding the entrepreneurial intentions 
of students for future entrepreneurial activities rather than the activities of students practicing 
entrepreneurship on a part-time basis (Marchand, Hermes & Sood 2016; Appiah-Nimo, Ofori 
& Arthur 2018). By student entrepreneurship, we refer to the definition proposed by Marchand 
et al. (2016) which emphasizes engagements in innovative revenue generating entrepreneurial 
activities by individuals studying full-time at a university. Our definition supports arguments 
in the art entrepreneurship literature (Beckman & Essig 2012; Pollard & Wilson 2014; Chang & 
Wyszomirski 2015; Rivetti & Migliaccio 2018) that entrepreneurial activities among 
professional artists may not always be about new venture creation but rather about self-
management, self-marketing and self-actualization activities that help professional artists sell 
their identity and their artwork to the world. Nevertheless, in contrast to studies on art 
education, identification of opportunities for exploitation through innovation, initiative, and 
risk taking for financial rewards is needed.  

Individuals who have been involved in other forms of student entrepreneurial activities 
such as school-based projects (Sugiarto, 2014; Nenzhelele et al. 2016) and student 
intrapreneurial activities with local entrepreneurs and communities (Vermont Agency for 
Education 2014 cited in Fatoki 2014) are excluded from the study. The chosen definition is 
preferable considering the context of our study. Professional training of visual arts students in 
Ghana lead to the acquisition of skills that can facilitate entrepreneurial activity. Therefore, we 
could hypothesize that if visual arts students are able to master the skills taught, they can 
capitalize on them to pursue craft entrepreneurship. If this assertion is true, then there is a need 
to comprehend what entrepreneurial activities visual arts students engage in, what motivates 



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them and how they manage the challenges that confront them. Perhaps, our findings would be 
similar to that of Ndirangu and Bosire (2004) who found that students in Kenya pursued 
entrepreneurship as a survival strategy. This argument is made because the Ghanaian context 
may exhibit characteristics that mirror features in the Kenyan environment such as high 
unemployment rates and low paying jobs that make taking care of children’s educational needs 
difficult for some parents. Unfortunately, the extent to which the above-mentioned assumptions 
have been explored are limited; an understanding of the issues at stake would be beneficial since 
the entrepreneurial journal can be long, tough and characterized by failure and disappointment. 
The challenges entrepreneurs face manifest themselves in poor statistics on the survival rates of 
enterprises especially start-ups, micro, small, and medium sized business. For students, the 
challenges associated with entrepreneurship could be more, considering the specific constraints 
they may face in terms of resources and expertise (Fatoki & Garve 2010; Fatoki 2014). 
Furthermore, the potential for added challenges for student entrepreneurs in visual arts is 
possible since they may have limited business management skills (Thom 2016) to effectively run 
their ventures. By shedding light on what student entrepreneurs do, we can develop policies that 
support their efforts for personal and societal benefit; hence the motivation for the study. 

This paper investigates the motivation of students who choose to pursue entrepreneurship, 
their entrepreneurial engagements, entrepreneurial challenges, and strategies used to balance 
entrepreneurship and academic work. The study is conducted among recent graduates of degree 
and higher national diploma programs at the University of Education, Winneba and the 
Takoradi Technical University in Ghana, who specialized in any discipline of visual arts 
including art education. These institutions were selected due to their active involvement in the 
provision of arts education in Ghana. Recent graduates shared their student entrepreneurship 
experience in hindsight which allowed for an assessment of the extent to which their student 
entrepreneurial engagements have continued after graduation. The rest of the paper is 
organized as follows: first the researchers give an overview of key issues emerging from 
theoretical and empirical literature on the topic. Followed by an explanation of the methodology 
used for the study and presentation of results is outlined. Results are then discussed in relation 
to literature, conclusions drawn, and recommendations made. 

Motivation for Pursuing Student Entrepreneurship 
Studies on reasons why students pursue part-time entrepreneurship show that financial reward 
is the most influencing factor (Carter et al. 2003, Ndirangu & Bosire 2004; Benzing et al. 2009; 
Kirkwood 2009; Fatoki 2014). Financial reward among other factors including desire for 
independence, family security, challenge and achievement, job security, opportunity 
identification, etc., are usually grouped under broad categories such as intrinsic or extrinsic 
(Robichaud et al. 2001), internal or external (Krishna 2013), and push or pull (Charles & 
Gherman 2015). Findings from a study by Fini, Meoli, Sobrero, Ghiselli and Ferrante (2016) on 
student entrepreneurs in Italy showed that student entrepreneurship in the study sample was 
driven by family and peer influences. In contrast, a study by Ndirangu & Bosire (2004), showed 
that Kenyan student entrepreneurs, in their sample, pursued part-time entrepreneurship as a 



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survival response to financial difficulties faced, rather than a platform for career rehearsal. 
Despite this finding, most students reported that profit generated from the business was usually 
not enough to meet their expenses. In a more recent and South African example, Fatoki (2014) 
also found that most student entrepreneurs in their sample chose part-time entrepreneurship 
as a means of solving their financial challenges, with a few indicating independence.  

Entrepreneurial Engagements 
Literature on the entrepreneurial activities of students is sparse. Current studies on the topic 
suggest that students can participate in entrepreneurship through a number of routes including 
undertaking practical entrepreneurship projects as part of their study (Sugiarto 2014; 
Nenzhelele et al. 2016) which can lead to the creation of university related start-ups that 
continue even after class projects have ended (Bathelt et al. 2010), joining a club or society that 
engages in entrepreneurship (Pittaway et al. 2011; Pittaway et al. 2015), and pursuing 
entrepreneurship independently (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004; Fatoki 2014; Meoli et al. 2016). 
These entrepreneurial engagements are usually conducted on, or close to campuses with 
students serving as target customers (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004). Protogerou, Caloghiru and 
Markou (2015) in investigating entrepreneurship cases in the creative arts in general, found 
businesses in product and fashion design, video games, architecture, and branding and 
communication design spaces. Similarly, Adebayo and Jenyo (2013) also posit that 
entrepreneurship in the textile and clothing industry can contribute to economic development. 
Anderson (2014) also suggests that graphic design presents opportunities for entrepreneurship 
in the arts.  

The above assertions suggest that visual arts in general provide great opportunities that art 
students can take advantage of in their entrepreneurial endeavors; and the pursuit of such 
entrepreneurial engagements by students can positively influence their intention to go into 
entrepreneurship full-time after graduation. Nenzhelele et al. (2016) found that students who 
participated in practical entrepreneurship projects exhibited enhanced entrepreneurial 
intention. Similarly, Bell and Bell (2016) observed increased confidence in the entrepreneurial 
ability of students exposed to an experiential learning approach in entrepreneurship. Therefore, 
it is not surprising that Fini et al. (2004) discovered, in an Italian case study, that 63% of student 
entrepreneurs in their sample continued with their businesses, in some cases, about five years 
after graduation from school. Despite this finding, Nabi et al. (2009) purports that graduate 
entrepreneurial career decision making can be complex and influence, to some extent, the 
interaction between two factors: entrepreneurial maturity and business idea complexity. The 
simpler the business idea and higher the student’s entrepreneurial maturity, the quicker the 
student transitions to entrepreneurship. 

Entrepreneurial Challenges and Entrepreneurship-Academic Work Balance 
The entrepreneurial journey can be difficult. According to Sugiarto (2014), some of the 
challenges faced by students are similar to those faced by entrepreneurs in general, and could 



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be classified under financial, managerial, marketing, production, and technological. This 
argument mirrors findings from other literature (Fatoki & Garve 2010, Fatoki 2014) indicating 
that access to finance, poor networking, lack of business management skills, and labor costs are 
key challenges faced by students in their entrepreneurial engagements. In contrast, findings 
from a study by Fini et al. (2016) show that for entrepreneurial students in Italy, difficulties 
faced include high taxation and excessive bureaucracy rather than lack of technical and 
managerial skills. For entrepreneurs working in groups, such as student entrepreneurial leaders, 
empirical work conducted by Bagheri & Pihie (2011) suggest that additional setbacks such as 
cultural diversity, low confidence in themselves, and poor commitment of group members exist. 
Nevertheless, it can be argued that irrespective of the route used by student entrepreneurs, the 
challenge of balancing entrepreneurship and schoolwork (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004) applies, and 
this is a feature that is unique to them. 

Findings from an empirical study by Abamba, Lawanson, and Sobowale (2017) show that 
student entrepreneurial engagement in their sample did not have significant or adverse effects 
on their academic performance. This result mirrors findings from a study by Ndirangu & Bosire 
(2004), which indicates that only few student entrepreneurs in their study reported that they felt 
their entrepreneurial activities had negatively impacted their academic work, with most student 
entrepreneurs rather reporting an improvement. However, upon examination of their study 
results, they discovered that most student entrepreneurs they interacted with scored a 
cumulative average performance of 53% to 70% in their exams (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004). 
Further, the researchers found differences in performance based on program of study with 
agriculture students scoring the least and arts students in their sample scoring an average of 63% 
(Ndirangu & Bosire 2004); an average which appears quite low considering university grading 
schemes globally. Further, Fini et al. (2016) presented an Italian case where student 
entrepreneurs, when compared with non-entrepreneurs, performed poorly in terms of their 
ability to complete their studies on time and their final grades. Regarding strategies employed 
in balancing student entrepreneurial activities and schoolwork, Ndirangu & Bosire (2004) 
reported that student entrepreneurs in their sample varied opening times based on free hours 
and their understanding of when business boomed (e.g. opening for longer hours at the 
beginning of the semester when they perceived students had more money). Student 
entrepreneurs compensated for missed lectures by copying notes from colleagues and studied 
into the night (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004). For those who opened all day, strategies employed 
included engaging others such as friends, family, business partners, and employees to assist with 
running the business (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004). 

Methods 
Yin (2009) suggests qualitative research as the best approach to study a specific topic in detail. 
Dana and Dana (2005) argue that there is a need for entrepreneurship research to explore 
qualitative methods that dig deep not only into what entrepreneurs do but also why and how 
they do them. More specifically, Nabi et al. (2009), argue that there is a need for more in-depth 
qualitative research on understanding of the stories and the circumstances of the 



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entrepreneurial journey of students. Therefore, the study uses a qualitative research design 
involving a total of twenty (20) graduates from two tertiary institutions offering visual arts 
programs in Ghana. Sample size determination was guided by the data saturation principle 
(Saunders et al. 2017); as data collection was halted at the point where no new data emerged 
from interviewee’s responses to questions asked.  Further, Adler and Adler (cited in Baker, 
Edwards and Doidge 2012) argue that depending on the size of the project and the time and 
resource constraints that apply, a sample between twelve and sixty is usually appropriate in 
qualitative research. That said, it is important to note that the qualitative research design used 
was based on an interpretivist epistemological stance and an ontological position of relativism 
with an emphasis on understanding and interpreting the stories of individuals rather than 
proving a point or generalizing (Hindle 2004). Respondents were sampled using a purposive 
and snowball approach. Purposive sampling for the study involved selecting respondents who 
met the criteria of having studied a course in visual arts at the selected tertiary institutions and 
engaged in entrepreneurship while studying. In total, ten of the respondents were sampled from 
the University of Education, Winneba and the other ten from the Takoradi Technical 
University. Once the first respondent in each institution had been selected purposively, 
snowball sampling was used to gain access to more respondents that met the criteria for 
purposive sampling. According to Naderifar, Ghaljaei, and Goli (2017), such an approach is 
useful in qualitative research when access to respondents with specific characteristics is difficult. 
In the case of this study, there was lack of information on alumni location and contact details in 
the chosen institutions to enable probability sampling of graduates of visual arts programs to 
participate in the study. Further, snowball sampling provides an opportunity for enhanced 
communication with respondents due to their acquaintance with the first respondent, 
nevertheless, it could lead to biases with the risk of biases lower for homogenous groups 
(Naderifar, Ghaljaei & Goli 2017). Data collection was carried out with the help of a semi-
structured interview guide as respondents interacted with the researchers over a period of forty-
five minutes to one hour. Data collection took place over a period of two months from June 
2019 to August 2019 at Winneba, Takoradi, Cape Coast and Accra. This was supplemented with 
follow up interviews within the period and in March 2020 allowing for the researchers to address 
gaps identified in analysis. Interview was considered as the most appropriate instrument for 
data collection in this study (Milena et al. 2008); it created room for respondents to express their 
views and experiences freely and in detail. Data analysis involved open and axial coding 
strategies, as well as thematic analysis approaches (Creswell 2005). 

Respondents’ Characteristics 
Participants included in the study varied only slightly in terms of demographics and other 
characteristics such as age, sex, program of study, exposure to entrepreneurship education, and 
year of completion. Regarding age: eleven out of twenty respondents fell within the twenty-five 
to twenty-nine years age group while the remaining nine respondents were slightly younger 
with ages between twenty and twenty-four years. This statistic is expected considering the 
context of the study which focuses on university students. Findings from the study also showed 



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a male dominated sample consisting of nineteen males and one female indicating poor 
representation of female respondents when compared to their population on campus. This 
trend was evident in studies conducted in different geographical contexts by Ndirangu and 
Bosire (2004). The trend could mean that female students are less interested in part-time 
entrepreneurial activities or that the snowball sampling technique used made it such that most 
female student entrepreneurs were not captured in the study.  

Concerning program of study, most respondents (ten out of twenty were identified to 
pursue the Higher National Diploma Program in Commercial Arts with nine out of the ten 
respondents specializing in Graphic Design and the other one majoring in Textiles. Further, 
eight out of twenty respondents were found to focus on the Bachelor of Education in Arts 
Degree program with six out of the eight majoring in Graphic Design and minoring in 
Leatherwork, Sculpture, Jewelry or Ceramics. The outstanding students majored in painting. In 
addition, two out of the twenty students studied a Bachelor of Arts Program in Graphic Design. 
While the Bachelor of Education program emphasized the training of art teachers for secondary 
education in Ghana, the Diploma and Bachelor of Arts program prepared students for industry. 
In addition, all respondents had been exposed to entrepreneurship education as they took at 
least one mandatory course in entrepreneurship as part of their programs. In total, twelve out 
of the twenty respondents had just completed school in 2019 and were waiting for posting to 
organizations where they will do their national service (which is a mandatory one-year work 
service to the nation following graduation from university education). Furthermore, eight out 
of twenty respondents were in the national service phase of their life after university education 
having graduated in 2018; most of them (six out of the eight) were placed as teachers in 
secondary schools in the country. Of the remaining two respondents, one was placed in industry 
with a printing press while the other was placed in a government municipal office. 

Motivation for Student Entrepreneurship 
The first objective for the study was to investigate the motivation of respondents for pursuing 
part-time entrepreneurship as students. Findings indicate that most respondents (sixteen out of 
twenty) were motivated to engage in entrepreneurial activities for financial reasons. 
Respondents explained that through student entrepreneurship they hoped to be able to “earn a 
living,” “earn to support their education,” “get money to give to family when needed,” “live a 
comfortable life,” “take care of their school related expenses,” “pay for some expenses without 
having to bother their parents after they have paid tuition fees,” “make money,” “pay bills and 
support themselves and others,” “get money to take care of their education and help address the 
needs of others,” and “become self-reliant.” Expenses included “hostel fees, tuition fees and costs 
associated with practical projects.” Desire to gain experience also surfaced as the next important 
motivation for part-time entrepreneurship as respondents (nine out of twenty) pointed out that 
they wanted to “earn while learning,” “learn while earning,” “practice what they teach,” 
“improve on their skills,” and “build a skill to move forward in chosen profession” Further, some 
respondents (six out of twenty) mentioned the availability of opportunity that came to them to 
“solve problems,” “help others,” “avoid idleness,” “take advantage of demand,” use new skills,” 



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or “build networks,” as a motivation for pursuing student entrepreneurship. Desire for 
independence was mentioned by three out of twenty respondents making reference to it by 
clarifying that they either “did not want to finish school and now be sending job applications 
around,” or wanted to “be their own bosses,” “employ others,” or “be in charge,” Further, job 
satisfaction appeared to be the lowest motivator, as only one respondent explained that they 
desired to pursue student entrepreneurship in order to “create a brand image that will make 
marketing their products and services easy in the future.” Only one respondent mentioned the 
role that passion for art played in their decision to pursue entrepreneurship while studying. 

It can be inferred from respondent’s responses that the acquisition of skills in visual arts 
played a role in pulling most respondents positively towards student entrepreneurship. Further, 
prior experience with others involved in entrepreneurship seemed to have catalyzed some 
respondents’ decision to engage in entrepreneurial activities while studying. While respondent 
3 explained that his motivation for pursing student entrepreneurship came from listening to 
friends share stories on how much they made financially as entrepreneurial artists in the digital 
painting space, respondent 2’s interest in entrepreneurship was quickened during his internship 
experience with a sign writer in his neighborhood. Respondent 5 also reported that his 
experience working with his dad’s printing business prepared him for entrepreneurship while 
respondents 6 and 10 highlighted the instrumental role their teachers played in opening them 
up to entrepreneurial opportunities in visual arts. 

Entrepreneurial Engagements 
The second objective of the study was focused on understanding the entrepreneurial 
engagements of respondents. Findings showed that most of the respondents (eighteen out of 
twenty) were engaged in the provision of art related products and services such as graphic 
communication design, t-shirt printing, digital and canvas painting, beading, pencil shading, 
cloth printing, photography, animation, digital embroidery, web design, interior decoration, 
wedding decoration, murals and relief sculpture. On the other hand, six out of twenty 
respondents mentioned that they were involved in non-art related activities such as “taxi 
services,” “online retailing of clothing,” “buying and selling of books,” “painting of homes,” 
“selling of art tools and materials,” “selling of shea butter,” and “selling of shirts,” in addition to 
their art related products and services. Graphic Communication Design, which involved 
designing of banners, posters, car branding, greeting cards and souvenirs, featured as the area 
of specialization most ventured into as fifteen out of twenty reported doing business in that 
space. Further, t-shirt printing pursued by ten out of twenty came up as next preferred 
specialization among respondents. Digital painting was practiced by five out of twenty while 
beading, web design, interior decoration, and wedding decoration represented the fields of 
specialization least ventured into (one out of twenty respondents for each). These findings 
suggest that most respondents pursued part-time entrepreneurship on a craft basis which was 
made possible after the acquisition of skills. Using words and phrases like “learnt how to make 
videos using YouTube and online tutorials,” “took an online course in web design,” “moving 
from one art shop to another,” “assisted a friend with wedding decorations,” “apprenticeship,” 



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“attachment,” “during tertiary education,” and “helped my head of department with 
illustrations,” respondents indicated that their skills were acquired either through formal 
education, industrial training, or self-teaching.  

Most of the above entrepreneurial activities (for twelve out twenty) started at tertiary level 
except for a few (eight out of twenty) who took on contracts prior to tertiary education, for 
example during, or after senior high-school education. Nevertheless, it appeared that even for 
those who started at the university level, entrepreneurial engagements were preceded by 
employment opportunities and skill acquisition experiences that occurred at the senior high-
school level which prepared them for successful navigation. It was observed that all respondents, 
at the time of interview, continued to engage in the student entrepreneurial activities they 
initiated with different intensities. Notable among them was respondents 9 and 16 who had 
diversified product and service offerings in art and non-art related sectors. While respondent 9 
currently employed six permanent employees and four part-time employees, respondent 16 had 
shops in three cities in the country (Accra, Cape Coast and Elmina), employed five people 
permanently and subcontracted to numerous artisans nationwide. Most respondents (ten out 
of twenty respondents) expressed interest in pursuing entrepreneurship full-time after 
completing national service making statements like “I have acquired skills and I need to use it,” 
“I can contribute to the unemployment situation by creating jobs for people,” and “I want 
flexibility with work times.” Respondent 14, for example, was confident that he was 80% 
prepared to go full-time by the time he completes his national service. Further eight out of 
twenty respondents opted for part-time entrepreneurship side by side a full-time career working 
for government or the private sector immediately after national service; with full-time 
entrepreneurial engagements considered for a later date in the future. For them, going part-time 
for entrepreneurship would enable them “raise capital,” “save to invest,” “prepare financially,” 
and “earn to grow their business”. In addition, two out of twenty respondents indicated no 
desire to pursue entrepreneurship in the short or medium term for reasons similar to those 
mentioned by respondent who wanted to pursue entrepreneurship part-time after national 
service. To this end, respondent 15 retorted that he “had nothing to start with, not even a 
laptop,” therefore, he felt that by choosing full-time employment with a well-established 
institution now he would “be ready to pursue full-time entrepreneurship in 10 years.” 

Entrepreneurial Challenges and Entrepreneurship-Academic Work Balance 
The final objective of the study aimed to shed light on challenges faced among student 
entrepreneurs and strategies used to balance entrepreneurship and academic work. Findings on 
challenges faced by respondents in their student entrepreneurial engagements revealed that 
limited access to capital was the main constraint faced by ten out of twenty respondents. 
Respondents explained that their inability to access the required capital made it difficult for 
them to “have access to quality tools and materials,” “access online resources which come at a 
cost,” “invest in machinery such as the embroidery machine which leads to lower profit margins 
arising from outsourcing the production of some of the jobs,” and “acquire other important 
assets like a computer, printer, camera and office space,” which, “sometimes breed distrust 



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among potential clients.” While respondent 14 argued that this constraint led him to lose a 
contract that required him to pre-finance about 70% of the estimated cost, respondent 15 
reported that his inability to secure a video camera led to him losing out on an entrepreneurial 
opportunity. Next, ten out of twenty respondents mentioned that they faced the challenge of 
dealing with operational issues within their organizations. Operational concerns hovered 
around “balancing school and entrepreneurial activities,” which lead to “high stress and back 
pain,” “meeting deadlines,” and “having access to secure and inexpensive transportation 
systems to aid delivery to clients.” Marketing featured as one of the challenges faced by six out 
of twenty respondents. According to two of these respondents, there were struggles with 
advertising and attracting customers willing to buy products offered considering the stiff 
competition faced from Chinese imports. For the other four respondents, marketing challenges 
meant cumbersome and expensive processes associated with the packaging and delivery of 
products to clients, difficulty in managing the perception of clients on the price of product and 
service offering, and “maintaining good customer relations even when clients do not 
communicate their needs effectively and make the work difficult.” Three respondents made 
reference to human resource management challenges when faced with stories of multiple layoffs 
recorded in the past by one student entrepreneur who struggled with recruiting and retaining 
people who displayed a strong work ethic. Other human resource concerns included difficulty 
finding individuals to partner with and subcontractors who are reliable and can meet time and 
quality standards. Only two out of twenty respondents suggested difficulty in financial record 
keeping as an issue of concern as they battled with managing finances in a way that kept personal 
funds separate from business proceeds and ensured proper accountability.  

Regarding strategies, findings from the empirical work conducted showed the use of 
business and academic strategies enforced by a strong personal work ethic. On one hand, twelve 
out of twenty respondents reported that they adopted strategies such as “ignoring less profitable 
jobs,” “referring jobs to friends,” “collaborating with others such as suppliers and third-party 
producers,” “not taking on too much work,” “operating business only at free times in between 
classes and on weekends,” “working at night most times between 11pm and 2am,” “employing 
others,” “reducing the number of sleeping hours,” and “communicating realistic deadlines to 
clients,” as a way of reducing their entrepreneurial demands. Respondent 13 suggested that 
some of the above business strategies are sometimes not effective. For example: he shared the 
story of a time in level 200 when demands from academic work led him to subcontract jobs he 
received to three people. According to him, the final output of the subcontracted work was poor 
and below expectations, such that he had to stay up for three consecutive nights to redo the 
work for his clients; affecting his preparedness for exams and consequently his academic 
performance for that course. From the academic side of things, ten out of twenty respondents 
mentioned that they “did not attend all the lectures,” but made up for this by “reading ahead,” 
“learning in the day time and on weekends,” “studying at dawn and in groups,” “completing 
assignments on time and asking friends to submit for them,” and “practicing rote memorization 
when examinations were close.” Respondent 9 mentioned not to have missed any of his classes 
throughout his four-year education, although meeting assignment deadlines was a challenge. 
Three out of twenty respondents explained that their high intellectual ability which allowed 



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them to “absorb within short periods,” and “understand what is taught easily,” served them well. 
For another respondent, his entrepreneurial activities served as a lab for learning since he felt 
the activities related to his field of study. Personal work ethic appeared to be important in 
enforcing academic and business strategies as eleven out of twenty respondents made reference 
to it. According to them, their success at balancing the two activities was a result of their 
possession of positive attributes such as “hard work and determination,” “time consciousness,” 
“good time management,” and “discipline.” Only one respondent reported that he perceived 
that his ability to balance studying and entrepreneurship was not only a result of his own efforts 
but also a result of divine favor from God for the sacrifices he made serving on the university’s 
chaplaincy board. Overall, only four out of twenty respondents reported to have had some of 
their grades negatively affected due to their involvement in entrepreneurship. One respondent 
explained that in his first year of university he was a first-class student, but his performance fell 
in second year when he started his entrepreneurial pursuits, so he tried to complete his 
education with second class honors. In contrast, another respondent who perceived no negative 
effect of entrepreneurial engagements on his academic work argued that the pursuit had actually 
been beneficial because it served as a motivation to complete assignments ahead of time. 

Discussion 
Findings from the study mirrored arguments in the literature (Carter et al. 2003; Ndirangu & 
Bosire 2004; Benzing et al. 2009; Kirkwood 2009; Fatoki 2014) on financial rewards being the 
main driver of student entrepreneurial engagements. This result supports conclusions drawn 
by Ndirangu and Bosire (2004) on the use of student entrepreneurship as a survival strategy, 
thus validating, in the case of the sampled respondents, our hypothesis on the role that similar 
economic indicators between Ghana and Kenya could play in student entrepreneurial decision 
making. Nevertheless, further studies on the topic using quantitative approaches that include 
larger samples will be needed to enable generalizations among visual arts students as a whole. 
The emphasis on financial incentives identified could be problematic as student entrepreneurs 
may lose interest in the venture once they have alternative sources of income after graduation. 
In fact, the possibility of this happening appeared higher for student entrepreneurs in our study 
who specialized in art education. Therefore, four out of eight respondents who preferred to 
pursue entrepreneurship on a part-time basis after graduation were those who majored in art 
education. We could argue that because opportunities for formal employment in the 
educational sector in Ghana was easier to access, student entrepreneurs majoring in art 
education were reluctant to pursue entrepreneurship on a full-time basis immediately after 
national service. In addition, a teaching career seemed to provide room for part-time 
entrepreneurial activities for respondents. 

Despite the financial motive explained above, it is important to note that results of the study 
also indicated that some students were motivated by a desire to gain experience from their 
entrepreneurial engagements. This finding suggests that respondents considered student 
entrepreneurship as an option for the “career rehearsal” (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004) benefits it 
afforded them. Therefore, the finding is a reminder that the entrepreneurial engagements of 



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respondents described in the study are meant to be a training period where entrepreneurial 
capabilities are tested, and lessons learnt for success. According to Marmer (2012), subsistence 
entrepreneurs who pursue entrepreneurship for reasons of earning to provide usually have a 
mindset that does not support growth thereby contributing less to the transformational growth 
of economies. To this end, for student entrepreneurs in the study to take their businesses 
forward after graduation and make an impact, there may be a need for guidance and tutoring, 
coupled with strong institutional support from the university, government, and society at large 
to enable student entrepreneurs develop the appropriate mental outlook for entrepreneurial 
growth and success. In this effort, it is important to involve family and friends as findings from 
the study support arguments by Fini et al. (2016) on the important role of family and friends as 
motivators for student entrepreneurship. In our study, this role extended to teachers and 
employers who positively influenced the perceptions of desirability and feasibility of 
respondents for entrepreneurship. 

Regarding entrepreneurial engagements, Findings showed that most respondents engaged 
in entrepreneurship independently (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004; Fatoki 2014; Fini et al. 2016). 
However, their activities were not only targeted at students as suggested by Ndirangu & Bosire 
(2004). In some cases, customer targets lived off campus and in geographical locations that 
necessitated delivery of goods and services via public transport to clients. Most of the art 
specializations in which businesses observed in the study focused on, except graphic 
communication design and cloth printing, did not feature in the literature. This may be due to 
the lack of empirical work on the topic. However, specialization areas collectively fell within 
visual arts; supporting the argument that the visual arts provides good opportunities for 
entrepreneurship activities inferred from the literature (Protogerou et al. 2015; Adebayo & 
Jenyo 2013; Anderson 2014). Additionally, results that ten out of twenty respondents were 
willing to pursue their entrepreneurial activities full-time after national service is similar to the 
percentage of student entrepreneurs found by Fini et al. (2004) to continue their entrepreneurial 
activities after their education. Perhaps it could be argued that the entrepreneurship 
engagements of students within the study contributed positively to building their 
entrepreneurial maturity (Nabi et al. 2009); coupled with fairly simple business ideas which 
made it easy for them to show increased entrepreneurial intention (Nenzhelele et al. 2016) and 
confidence in their ability to transition to entrepreneurship full-time in the near future (Bell & 
Bell 2016). 

It is important not to underestimate the role of skill acquisition in facilitating the 
entrepreneurial initiatives of respondents in the study. Respondents in the study acted 
entrepreneurially in their quest for knowledge and skill acquisition; not limiting themselves only 
to what they were taught in class. In the stories explored in this study, skill acquisition for some 
respondents started prior to entering the university, for example, self-tutoring on the internet. 
For other respondents, there was a need to still get practical training opportunities outside the 
formal educational set-up via internships to master the skill. These findings bring to the 
foreground the need for an educational curriculum that emphasizes both theory and practice, 
so students are well-equipped for whatever career path they choose. Further, respondent’s use 
of skills acquired to pursue craft entrepreneurship is not bad per se; nevertheless, this can have 



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implications on their ability to grow. Findings indicated that only two of the respondents 
exhibited traits of opportunistic entrepreneurs with a clear difference in terms of growth 
between the two respondents’ entrepreneurial initiative and that of the others. 

 Regarding challenges, findings supported to some extent, arguments that a key 
challenge faced by student entrepreneurs is the issue of balancing schoolwork and 
entrepreneurship activities (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004), as only few respondents made reference 
to it. Perhaps, this positive outlook is a result of their use of various creative strategies to 
managing their businesses. Strategies suggested were similar to that found by Ndirangu & Bosire 
(2004), such as, varying opening times based on free time, making up for missed classes through 
personal study to manage the academic, and business activities. However, issues relating to the 
personal work ethic of respondents that came up in the study did not feature in the literature. It 
is important to note that feedback from most respondents on the extent to which their 
entrepreneurial activities affected their academic work was positive, in line with findings in the 
literature (Ndirangu & Bosire 2004; Abamba 2017). Most respondents did not emphasize 
student related challenges, supporting the argument by Sugiarto (2014) that general challenges 
faced by entrepreneurs are usually applicable to student entrepreneurs. To this end, the study 
observed challenges that could be categorized under financial, operational, marketing, and 
managerial in line with studies by Fatoki & Garve (2010), Fatoki (2014) and Sugiarto (2014). 
Issues of high taxation and excessive bureaucracy highlighted in the study by Fini et al. (2016) 
did not come up in the study at hand. This may be due to varying business environments in 
Ghana in comparison to Italy. In addition, human resource challenges did not feature as an 
issue of concern for all but three respondents, and this is possibly due to the practice of craft 
entrepreneurship identified earlier involving only the student entrepreneur.  

Conclusions, Implications, and Recommendations 
The study sought to shed light on the motivation of graduates of visual arts degree and higher 
national diploma programs in pursing entrepreneurship while studying, their entrepreneurial 
engagements, challenges, and survival strategies. Based on the findings above, the researchers 
conclude that student entrepreneurship among the studied respondents is considered a survival 
strategy that is driven by skill acquisition for the pursuit of craft entrepreneurship in their field 
of specialization. It serves as a good platform for improving technical and entrepreneurial skills 
in preparation for a career in entrepreneurship if the student entrepreneur so choses. 
Nevertheless, the entrepreneurial journey of the student entrepreneur can be difficult and is 
embedded with both general and context specific challenges that the student entrepreneur tries 
to navigate using varied creative approaches.  

The notion of student entrepreneurship as a survival strategy can interfere negatively with 
the student’s education. Despite the benefits associated with student entrepreneurship 
explained above, the survival instinct in humans can cause excessive risk taking among students, 
especially, because findings from the study show a fairly positive belief among respondents that 
they are capable of managing student entrepreneurial activity and academic work effectively 
with little evidence to support this. To this end, future work that investigates the issues identified 



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96 

in this study via quantitative approaches among a larger sample size would be beneficial. In 
addition, a study that takes this work a step further to shed light on the effect of student 
entrepreneurial activities and student academic performance among student entrepreneurs in 
Ghana is needed. Such as study should rely on facts from documents such as student transcripts 
to ensure objective and reliable insights for effective policy making.  

Survival and craft could also imply small scale operations and inability to grow in a way 
that can transform the economy. Therefore, policy makers in academia, industry, and 
government should work together towards positioning student entrepreneurs to be growth 
oriented even when choosing the craft route to entrepreneurship. It is clear that respondents in 
this study take advantage of the skills acquired in their fields of specialization to pursue 
entrepreneurship. However, the focus on a specific subject area can narrow down the 
entrepreneurial opportunities that students get exposed to. Thus, it is recommended that 
universities and government put in place structures that enable students to explore extra-
curricular activities that expose them to non-art related issues and widen their scope of 
knowledge in order to facilitate synthesis and creativity. Incorporating this measure informally 
into the student’s educational experience will encourage voluntary participation that is driven 
by student interest for success. With the insight that student entrepreneurs face both general 
and context specific challenges, students should be educated to capitalize not only on targeted 
entrepreneurship support programs, but also on national entrepreneurship training, and 
financial support programs available. 

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