Getting students to think like entrepreneurs is key to getting their innovative ideas to the marketplace, but it’s more than that: It makes them better leaders and citizens. A University of Nebraska-Lincoln course is helping them learn that entrepreneurial mindset.

Engineering Entrepreneurship 491/891 teaches the basics of customer discovery – a framework for exploring the relationship between innovation and customer needs. The course challenges students to answer questions such as: Who cares about this problem and about this solution? Are people willing to buy my product or service? What is the value of my proposed solution?

The latest class wrapped up in December. The course is co-taught by Eric Markvicka, Robert F. and Myrna L. Krohn Associate Professor of mechanical and materials engineering, and Joy Eakin, entrepreneurship program manager for NUtech Ventures, UNL’s technology commercialization affiliate.

“Traditional engineering curriculum often focuses on how to create and technically analyze things, but students rarely gain exposure into how those ideas move from the classroom or lab into the real-world,” Markvicka said. “Naturally, engineers are very innovative, but even the best ideas won’t succeed unless they solve a meaningful problem for real people. In this course, we challenge students to think beyond the classroom by identifying their customers, mapping the broader ecosystem, and assessing the size and potential of their market.”

One student, Oluwagbemisola Alo, who is building on her previous experience of starting her own engineering training business in Nigeria, described the course as “empowering and transformative.”

“This class has genuinely reshaped how I think about entrepreneurship,” she said. “This is the first time I’ve really understood the difference between simply having an idea and actually building something people will value. One of the biggest lessons for me has been stepping out of my comfort zone and talking directly to potential customers. It turns out that real insights don’t come from assumptions; they come from listening to the day-to-day challenges and pain points of the people you hope to serve.”

She said she also understands now that “pivoting isn’t failure. If anything, adjusting your value proposition early, especially when it doesn’t align with customer needs, is a smart and necessary part of building a viable business. That mindset shift alone has been incredibly helpful,” said Alo, a Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering.

Alo said she better understands the first steps of bringing a business idea to the marketplace: narrowing down the customer base, identifying early adopters, running customer discovery and recognizing potential funding pathways.

“And on a personal level, the course has helped me grow. I used to be timid about reaching out to people for their time or opinions, but this experience has immensely boosted my confidence. I now feel much more comfortable initiating conversations that matter,” she added.

Another student, Khirul Alam Titu, said he’s long had an entrepreneurial mindset and dreams of owning his own businesses but didn’t know how to proceed before the course.

“While I previously had a general understanding of what entrepreneurship entails, this course provided a clear and practical blueprint for turning ideas into reality,” he said.

“This combination of structured learning and practical insights has significantly increased my confidence and provided me with a strong foundation to pursue my entrepreneurial goals,” said Khirul, a Ph.D. student in chemical and biomolecular engineering.

Khirul said he particularly appreciated hearing from guest speakers who are business owners or investors.

One of those, Ben Williamson, partner and co-founder of Grit Road Partners, works with entrepreneurs, helping them raise money to make their ideas reality. He talked to the class about how to attract investors.

“I have to be convinced that it’s going to be something you’re doing that’s different … that the world’s going to want,” said Williamson.

He encouraged students to explore resources that could lead to funding, such as those offered by Invest Nebraska and the Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development.

Over the course of the semester, the students developed a camaraderie as they learned and challenged each other to become entrepreneurial.

In one class session this semester, students discussed the innovative product or technology idea they had, not in an abstract sense, but rather what their potential consumer base would be and how they would sell it to them.

Those ideas included a jewelry shopping app, a leg brace that adapts soft materials and robotics, metal 3D printing, electrochemical microbe sensors, a mobile app to help students grade their ACT practice tests and a wearable panic button.

Eakin said the class aims to help students develop “a mindset they’ll take forward of listening to stakeholders, and responding to their needs, rather than just my own fun ideas for inventing cool innovations.”

Markvicka said he observed students’ mindsets and approaches change over the course, from talking about solutions or technologies at the beginning to thinking about bigger problems to solve and customers’ needs.

“It’s fun to see the students grow throughout the course, both in how they think about these problems and the technologies they’re trying to bring to market.”

People who develop this entrepreneurial mindset don’t necessarily go on to start their own businesses or introduce new products, Eakin said. But they make good employees, good leaders, good citizens because they “learn to actually listen and respond to others’ needs.”

Engineering NUtech Ventures