Become an Entrepreneur Approximate Time Needed:   90-135 minutes (2-3 classes) Lesson Summary:   Students will reflect on their interests and skills while using the ECOS Major Search or Major Directory in order to determine what might be a good course of study in college. Following this, students will research the possible major and consider its Career Possibilities, then research those careers using the Career Directory. Considering the skills and interests and taking desirable traits from any number of careers, students will create a new career that they might pursue as an entrepreneur. Finally, students will use the employment opportunities section of the New York Times Online to view a good job advertisement. Then, they will write an advertisement for their entrepreneurial career seeking a partner or an employee. Lesson Objective:   Students will research areas of interest for possible college majors; use personal interests combined with computer-based research to determine an imaginative entrepreneurial career; and, use strong, concise writing to effectively communicate the skills and interests necessary for such a career. Materials and Resources: ECOS Major Search or Major Directory ECOS Career Search or Career Directory New York Times Online at http://www.nytimes.com (students will have to create an account, but it is free) Helpful Hints:   Inform students that they may need to consider a number of different majors before they discover attractive paths that such a course of study would entail. Teachers may suggest that students come up with skills and areas of interest not listed in the career possibilities of Majors. Activities Students choose an area of interest that corresponds to a college major. Depending on the specificity of the interest, students may have greater or lesser difficulty identifying such a major. Encourage students to think creatively about what majors might correspond to more idiosyncratic interests (e.g., a student interested in comic books might also be interested in creative writing, graphic design, studio art, etc.). Students will use the Major Search or Major Directory to locate a major. The teacher might want students to find multiple majors that would correspond to one particular interest or related interests. Ask students to read the Career Possibilities section of their major, and then research careers that correspond to majors using the Career Directory. Have students compose a brief abstract of such job, in the style of a New York Times (or similar periodical) advertisement. Based on the research of their potential college major and corresponding careers, students should then develop an entrepreneurial career that incorporates--as creatively, but as practically, as possible--personal interest, college major content and experience, and ideas for successful and fulfilling ideas. Pair students with classmates of similar interests, if possible, to edit ads and brainstorm for new ideas. (For example, the job might require a personal assistant to do ________; or, the ad might market the type of entrepreneurial activity to others interested in the same thing.) Evaluation:   Students should be evaluated on each step of the project. A useful grading paradigm might be: major search (10%); career search (10%); development of entrepreneurial career (40%); composition of advertisement (40%). Possible Adaptations:   Plan can be split into four separate assignments (according to the paradigm spelled out above) rather than one single project.