Patents and intellectual property in entrepreneurship education in computing at Hofstra University

Entrepreneurship is an integral part of the computing education at Hofstra University and consists of: (i) two optional, specialization-type programs as part of undergraduate degrees that target students with strong entrepreneurial interests, and (ii) open seminars and enrichment modules, exposing all majors to entrepreneurial ideas and activities while attempting to spark their creativity and drive for innovation. To educate students and help them understand the purpose, procedures, cost and legal implications of patenting and intellectual property issues and to give them first-hand experience in these subjects, we have included “patents and intellectual property” as one of the facets of the new programs and activities. In this paper, we present the implementation details and we summarize the experiences and practices and draw conclusions. Adoption of modules at Qatar University illustrates the generality and transferability of the approach.