Cambridge University’s new entrepreneurship diploma has had a fabulous take-up from around the world.

 The world first, one-year post graduate initiative kicks off in the UK in September with 38 post-grads enrolled.

Take-up from both the corporate and education sectors globally has been phenomenal, according to Dr Shai Vyakarnam, whose brainchild it is.

The Post Graduate Diploma in Entrepreneurship has attracted a number of candidates from Malaysia. Others are coming from Australia, India, Peru, South Africa and other countries.

“We also have some good candidates from Britain,” said Dr Vyakarnam – director of the university’s Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning.

The diploma establishes a global paradigm for enterprise that America’s Ivy League will envy, according to Dr Vyakarnam.

“The response has been fantastic from around the world and we are absolutely thrilled,” he told Business Weekly. “It’s an extremely heterogeneous mix and provides a first-class platform for entrepreneurial post-graduates.”

The new diploma – first reported by Business Weekly in January – is the result of more than two years of behind-scenes work to determine the feasibility and potential benefits of such a model.

Dr Vyakarnam said: “Taking the vision and practice of entrepreneurship from Cambridge to the wider world has been our ambition for some time and the university has again shown its drive and innovation in backing the initiative.

“Through CfEL’s IGNITE summer school and Enterprise Tuesday events we have seen the benefits of leveraging best practice to inspire Cambridge students  to pursue innovative ideas and form companies to commercialise them internationally.

“While Silicon Valley is a much bigger area than Cambridge, in terms of innovative thinking we are very much a match for the best globally.”

The new course involves participants spending three weeks on campus during the year and also complete 10 hours of online learning a week. Participants will be expected to flag up an enterprise idea at interview and then follow that through the course.

The programme is aimed at potential entrepreneurs; established ones keen to understand the academic theory behind building a successful company, or intrapreneurs working for larger organisations.

Serial entrepreneurs including Hermann Hauser, a Business Weekly backer, will inject their expertise and experience into the course programme.

Dr Hauser said: “Sharing best practice is a great way to acquire entrepreneurship skills. Most seasoned entrepreneurs have made mistakes in the early days and this is yet another superb Cambridge initiative designed to help the new generation avoiding some of the banana skins.”

• PHOTOGRAPH SHOWS: Dr Shai Vyakarnam