Exploring Entrepreneurship

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USC Pre-College > Summer Programs > Exploring Entrepreneurship

Have you ever thought about starting your own business? Do you think you have an entrepreneurial mind? In the “Exploring Entrepreneurship” course, you will be immersed in the real world of establishing and building a company. The course blends business theory and the practice of being an entrepreneur.

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PROGRAM DATES
June 15 – July 12, 2025

PREREQUISITES
Must have completed at least 10th grade by June 15, 2025

COURSE DRESS CODE
Business / Professional

DAILY SCHEDULE & ACTIVITIES
MONDAY – FRIDAY
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Classes in session
12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Lunch
1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Classes in session

Tuition & Application
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COURSE OVERVIEW

Highlights

  • Hear from guest entrepreneurs and other speakers
  • Participate in off-campus field trips to experience the Los Angeles business and entrepreneurial environment
  • Previous trips have included Santa Monica’s Silicon Beach to meet with startups and venture firms, leading retailers in the active sports business, manufacturing facilities in Downtown LA and some leading food concepts by Los Angeles top entrepreneurs
  • Practice what you learn by creating your own business through a variety of class and group assignments
  • Learn how to work in teams and build skills to help you present your ideas to an audience

Topic of Study

  • Accounting and finance
  • Marketing
  • Human resources
  • Creativity and innovation
  • Business plans
  • Ethics
  • Personal branding
  • Building your network

HEAR FROM OUR FORMER STUDENTS

All the guest speakers we had were very interesting and we definitely learned a lot from the experiences that they shared with us.
Learning the mindset of entrepreneurship and how it is okay to pivot and it is okay to fail.
The most valuable aspects of this course were learning new perspectives and strategies in entrepreneurship. Learning how to see a bigger picture, thinking outside of the box, and connecting the different paths entrepreneurs can take when making a business taught me many things about entrepreneurship that I didn’t know before, Another valuable aspect was the idea that having practical experience such as starting a small venture, networking, and learning from failure often provides more valuable insights than purely academic study, therefore failure isn’t a bad thing but rather a good thing in the business industry.
Hearing about the right mindset of an entrepreneur. Learning from others' mistakes. Also the assignments and USC as a connection helped me talk to people I would not have talked to before and was very interesting learning from other founders.
The resources we are provided. We are treated like real USC students and given access to so many resources. Additionally, the Founder Profile assignment was very insightful and allowed me to reach out and build my network.
Being able to hear from active and former founders, along with being coached and taught by a neuroscientist, it was really awesome to understand the psychology of success and founding.