Ask The Experts: Advice For High School Girls Interested In Business Degrees Or Entrepreneurship?

Q: What advice do you have for parents of high school girls who are interested in pursuing business degrees or entrepreneurship?

A: “Talk to your daughter about why she wants to pursue that degree,” says Doan Winkel, senior chair in entrepreneurship at John Carroll University. “Encourage her to think deeply and try to understand what outcomes they are in search of. That will likely change during college years, but it’s good to understand the purpose because this isn’t an easy journey. If she has a handle on her purpose and how the degree will get her there, it will keep her motivated. Talk to other female students studying business, and speak with professional women who are doing what [the student] thinks she wants to do. What is a typical day like? What frustrations do they struggle with? What do they wish they had done before they began their journey? Find out if she can shadow a woman in business to feel a real day-in-a-life.”