Entrepreneurship Diploma Old Carthusians go on to do the most wonderful things, working in a vast number of sectors and industries. surround them. Topics such as GDPR, social media, cyber security and AI (among others) are all real, live issues that they will face in their first jobs outside of university and should they wish to start a business.
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ncreasingly, we see a move away from the ‘traditional’ professions as our innovative and creative alumni go on to develop their own new initiatives, starting their own successful businesses, and spotting new gaps in the market. The number of OC entrepreneurs continues to grow steadily year on year (despite a global pandemic and its effects!) which is perhaps unsurprising given how the skills of an entrepreneur align so well with the skills of our pupils. Inquisitive, creative, analytical … our pupils show all these in abundance so it is only right that the School adapt to nurture these and bring entrepreneurship to the curriculum. The new addition of a Charterhouse Entrepreneurship Diploma is not just about teaching entrepreneurial skills, it’s also about preparing Carthusians for future work, talking them through real challenges and real problems. The course is designed to give them proper exposure to some of the technologies that they will be faced with, as well as the challenges that 40
The syllabus encourages the pupils to go from absolutely nothing to identifying a potential opportunity, and solutions to any problems with it, through to testing this opportunity. This then becomes the kernel of the start of an idea which they take through the market research process, the business planning process and then the pitching process. At each stage the idea is discussed and tested through very lively peer to peer interaction. The course is intended to be a mixture of directed learning and freedom to explore, to feel less like a structured lesson but more an open forum. It’s designed to tick a lot of boxes in terms of developing skills such as self-awareness, creativity, teamwork, networking, communication and presentation skills among others. The curriculum and activities are directed predominantly at the Specialists, as is the Charterhouse Entrepreneurship Diploma, although avenues are being explored as to how to bring this dimension to the Under School. The intention is not to make the younger years overly businessminded in a ‘shirt and tie’ sense but to make them more financially literate, teaching core finance skills that are relevant to them – think Klarna rather than mortgages. There are a number of activities and events also attached to the entrepreneurship curriculum. The
lecture series is open to everyone in the School, complementing the ‘taught’ element. There’s been a vast range of speakers including entrepreneur and angel investor Simon Squibb, through to our own entrepreneurial OCs like Mark Fischel (g13), founder of Aklimate. There are also less formal activities, such as the ‘Office Hours’ initiative, which allow pupils a safe space to come and discuss their own ideas for start-ups without fear of judgement. A number of corporate collaborations are also in the pipeline, with the first launching this year with Microsoft. OC Alex East (R08) leads our OC Tech
“ The Charterhouse Entrepreneurship Diploma is not just about teaching entrepreneurial skills, it’s also about preparing Carthusians for future work.” Lecture Theatre
