The Association for Entrepreneurial Education (AEA) was born from the initiative of graduates of the Fulbright-RAF Scholar Award program from over 12 Romanian universities. The goal? To take entrepreneurial education to another level in Romania. With the continued support of RAF – a key partner from the beginning – AEA aims to become an important reference point for academic entrepreneurship in the country.
The Romanian entrepreneurial ecosystem has grown significantly in recent years, and now Romania is seen as an “emerging ecosystem with real potential,” says Veronica Maier, the new president of AEA. In all this dynamism, the association can bridge the gap between a rapidly evolving environment and the need for stability in entrepreneurial education. The next phase is one of “strategic maturation,” where the focus shifts to concrete data and tools to guide the long-term development of entrepreneurial education in universities.
“It’s not enough to just produce knowledge,” says Veronica Maier directly. “We need to transform what we know into something useful for the long term.” Specifically, AEA wants to offer universities training programs, mentorship, and international partnerships, but also help them better understand how entrepreneurial education is developing within their own ecosystem.
A Solid Collaboration, Built Over Time
The partnership with RAF has been essential for AEA. Over the past decade, RAF has supported universities through programs that have changed the way entrepreneurship is taught and practiced in the Romanian academic environment. Among these: the Fulbright-RAF Scholar Award program, which gave Romanian professors the chance to spend a semester at the University of Rochester’s Ain Center for Entrepreneurship; Entrepreneurial University, a program run by Junior Achievement Romania; Innovation Labs, where students develop tech business ideas with mentorship from local entrepreneurs; and the University Leadership Program, created together with Babson College and Harvard University, which prepares university leaders to implement the changes necessary for the future economy. Veronica Maier herself benefited from the Fulbright-RAF Scholar Award program – her experience at the University of Rochester gave her clear perspectives on what a mature university ecosystem looks like and what role professors play in connecting the university with the economy.
Three Directions for the Coming Years
For the near future, Veronica Maier sees three main directions through which AEA can support the development of entrepreneurial education in Romanian universities.
The first is continuity in training academia. Projects come and go, but people remain. If the academia have constant access to training programs, examples of best practices, and a community where they can learn from each other, entrepreneurial education will no longer depend only on the momentary enthusiasm of a few, but will become something natural. “Many professors have been trained, which has helped universities and opened a different perspective in the academic environment,” explains Veronica Maier.
The second direction is to strengthen connections between universities and the private sector – to facilitate closer connections between professors, entrepreneurs, and investors. Veronica Maier observes that students learn best when theory intertwines with practice, from the real stories – successes and failures – of those who have already built something.
The last direction aims at ensuring the voice of academia who work directly with students and young entrepreneurs is reflected in public policies, both at the university and national level. Veronica Maier believes that the experience accumulated in universities and in AEA should be taken into consideration when decisions are made about entrepreneurship development: “Policies must start from the reality on the ground – from professors, students, entrepreneurs, from university centers that experiment and innovate.”
Investment in People, Not Just Projects
“What I appreciate most about RAF is that it doesn’t just fund projects – it invests in people and communities that have long-term impact,” says Veronica Maier. This approach perfectly aligns with AEA’s vision for the coming years: to transform what has been learned and the data collected into concrete decisions that contribute to a university entrepreneurial ecosystem with real impact on Romanian society and economy.