One university that has adopted the concept of entrepreneurial university is Lund University, Sweden. Presenting a lecturer from Lund University on Friday (10/03/17) at the Auditorium of School of Business and Management (SBM), ITB provide their students with the chance to learn about mechanism of entrepreneurial university abroad, specifically in Sweden. Currently, Lund University have Sten K. Johnson Centre for Entrepreneurship that functions the same as Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (LPiK) ITB. However, there is a long and winding road that leads to entrepreneurial university.

In 1950-1960, two Swedish companies, Gambro and Tetra Pak brought innovation to their respective fields. That time, innovation was done only by companies out of curiosity. In 1980’s, however, Sweden economic condition recede. It was the impact of receding shipment caused by receding number of exported goods that affected big shipping companies. Some Sweden’s big name conglomerates then took the initiative to build an innovation center inspired by science park built in London. The innovation center was build to boost marketable innovative products, and to trigger the re-establishment of Swedish shipping business. This science park was then renamed to Ideon Science Park.

In 1989, a professor from Lund University tried to initiate studies on entrepreneurship in the university. However, his idea was dismissed since the idea was still uncommon and entrepreneurship was closely associated with corporate and capitalism. In 1990’s, his idea began to be appreciated as professors from other faculties had the same views on entrepreneurship. In 2000, Lund University commenced entrepreneurial activities that involve their students. The program supports funding to applicable and improvable ideas.

The program has been supported with entrepreneurship course since 2004. Learning from the infamous term entrepreneurship, the course carry the theme ”to work with innovative project”. The growth of entrepreneurial spirit in Lund Unviversity this decade, Marie said, is attributed to push and pull factors. The push factor comes from external push from the government while the pull factor comes from internal pull of academicians of Lund University.

There are four parties that contribute to the development of innovation in Lund University; they are academicians, city government, private parties and communities in the city. But too many cooks spoil the broth. These parties executed many projects that are left unfinished. Therefore, strict selection to proposals is executed to get around this problem.

Lund University keep expanding their capacity as an entrepreneurial university by building other supportive facilities, two of which are the ambitious Science Road and Science Village Scandinavia. Science Road is a specific area with a purpose to develop science and technology with companies’ research and development built on that area while Science Village Scandinavia is settlements provided for scientists and researchers of Science Road.