OTTAWA – A new study conducted by Go Daddy reveals that today’s young business owners in Canada are less likely to have gone to university than their predecessors.
The findings come from Venture Forward, a multi-year international research initiative by GoDaddy that conducted data analysis on 770,000 Canadian online microbusinesses, which typically employ 10 people or less.
The research found that 47 per cent of Gen Z entrepreneurs indicated they had a degree, significantly lower than the 65% of millennials, 58% of Gen X, and 56% of baby boomers.
Among those surveyed who did graduate from university, almost half (48%), say their university education has not been valuable for life as a business owner.
“GoDaddy’s research indicates entrepreneurship is becoming an increasingly attractive alternative to higher education,” stated Young Lee, head of GoDaddy Canada, in a press release.
“With higher education costs rising, we appear to be seeing a generational mindset shift in the way young people look at the value of university degrees.”
The study also found that on average across all ages included in the research, only 13 per cent of entrepreneurs left education after graduating high school.
Amongst Gen Z entrepreneurs surveyed, the percentage who left education after high school jumps to 25 per cent.
Kristel Manes, executive director of the Business Centre Guelph Wellington, says while she cant speak to the 25 per cent outlined in the study, she has noticed more young people taking an interest in business.
“I’m not sure about the stat of 25 per cent, but I do see more and more young people looking at starting businesses or doing side hustles,” Manes told the Advertiser.
The Business Centre Guelph Wellington runs the Summer Company program designed to help young entrepreneurs ages 15 to 29 start and run their own summer business.
The program requires participants to be enrolled in high school or post secondary education, with an expected return the following September.
“We’ve had a lot of local businesses start that way,” said Manes.
“There are businesses in town (Guelph) that began as a Summer Company business that are now full time businesses.”
