Stanford University has a deep history in entrepreneurship and technological innovation. For more than a century, the university has incubated ideas, educated entrepreneurs and fostered breakthrough technologies that have been instrumental in the rise and constant regeneration of Silicon Valley, and, at the same time, contributed to the broader global economy. This book focuses on data gathered from a large-scale, systematic survey of Stanford alumni, faculty, and selected staff in 2011 to assess the university's economic impact based on its involvement in entrepreneurship. The report describes Stanford's role in fostering entrepreneurship, discusses how the Stanford environment encourages creativity and entrepreneurship, and details best practices for creating an entrepreneurial ecosystem. The report on the 2011 survey, estimates that 39,900 active companies can trace their roots to Stanford. If these companies collectively formed an independent nation, its estimated economy would be the world's 10th largest. Extrapolating from survey results, those companies have created an estimated 5.4 million jobs and generate annual world revenues of $2.7 trillion.

Entrepreneurial Impact: The Role of MIT helps us understand the economic impact of the entrepreneurial ventures of university graduates. We know that some universities play an important role in many economies through their core education, research and development, and other spillovers. However, in order to support economic growth through entrepreneurship, universities must create a culture and programs that make entrepreneurship widely accessible to students. While MIT's leadership in developing successful entrepreneurs has been evident anecdotally, this study - one of the largest surveys of entrepreneur alumni ever conducted - quantifies the significant impact of MIT's entrepreneurial ecosystem that supports firm startups. And, while MIT is more unique and unusual in the programs it offers and in its historical culture of entrepreneurship, MIT provides a benchmark by which other institutions can gauge the economic impact of their alumni entrepreneurs. The report also provides numerous examples of programs and practices that might be adopted, intact or modified as needed, by other universities that seek enhanced entrepreneurial development. Finally, the Appendix identifies several universities that have carried out surveys of alumni entrepreneurs.