BAEP 551 - Introduction to New Ventures

Easy class, feels like undergrad-level. High-level intro to entrepreneurship without much that can really be applied to starting a company

The professors are still figuring out this class (we are the first one spring 2023) so hopefully it gets better from here. Ultimately the professors are incredibly knowledgeable and helpful and flexible for the curriculum. Classroom environment is a lot of fun and very supportive and useful if you are starting your own venture or curious how it all works. However, sometimes it can be a bit too theoretical with ambiguous assignments (though the assignments are fairly easy and not time consuming).

I loved this course. This class allowed me to be creative and come up with business ideas but then also gave practicial steps on how to actually go about creating a business. I loved the professors and the activities we did in class. This class is all about what you put in. If you want to come engaged and try to participate, then you will get useful skills out of it

Course was a bit slow but very hands-on and interactive. Professor Glenn Fox was fantastic and would highly reocmmend is other entrepreneurship classes.

About 60% of the classes feature a guest speaker who has founded a company. Good mix of speakers from different industries and different scale enterprises. Think the course provides a good overview of what entrepreneurship really looks like, and doens't just focus on cliche Silicon Valley venture backed tech startups. Moderate workload.

This course serves a purpose of making entrepreneurship and start-ups more accessible and less daunting. Guest speakers are (for the most part) impactful and show you that it really is achievable to start a business yourself. Workload is not bad. If you have an actual idea, it can be great to get you to think critically about it.

Echo all the other comments re. class rigor, professor treating students like children (he literally calls you "kids"), and lack of organization. I'll add that there is quite a bit of outside of classroom time required for the assignments with quick deadlines.

Lot of non MBAs in the class; not rigorous at all. Feels like it should be an upper division undergrad class. Some interesting speakers. Appreciate the challenge to think more entreprenuerial, but beyond that not learning much from the assignments. Class is a bit unorganized and lacks structure.

I like the experiential aspect of the class but it gets cringy when the professor wastes a lot of time on banter. A lot of time is just spent discussing sports and I get it that sports is a huge part of U.S, but not everyone is into sports or cares about football games. We can use all that time to discuss something that is relevant to MBA folks. Don't think I have added much from his teaching but I certainly did learn a thing or two from the guest speakers.

There are some undergrads taking an accelerated masters program and teaches mostly for them. It's an easy class if you're looking for a throwaway but the professor will treat it like a high school/undergrad level course.

Course material is light - certainly not MBA-level but there are good guest speakers. Professor's personality may be offputting to some. If you are late he makes you sing in front of the class He is not very organized when it comes to what he expects from the assignments.

Very simple- no exams, just a couple short papers. Professor is condescending and doesn't really teach to our abilities. Not entirely sure what I've gained from this class.

The course content is extremely simple and there are no exams, but the professor treats the class like high school students (in the worst way; think the teacher who asked the football team how their game went because he actually does that). The course TA is an undergrad student who doesn't really understand how to grade with the grad school 'curve'. The class would probably be worth it with a different professor.

Autry is an unispiring professor who if very self absored. Most classes, cases, speakers tend to focus around talking about himself or bringing in professionals from the space industry. Nothing to really learn here and seems to be very uninterested in coaching or helping students in a meaninful way on their pitch projects.

I have already done a startup, so a lot of content is redundant for me. However, professor Autry has great insights on the startup world, and brings in some great speakers.

If you are interested in starting a business and just want to get a basic clue as to how to avoid some of the basic pitfalls of new product development...this might be the best class for you. I would start your entrepreneurial studies with this course!

Autry is the most arrogant, disorganized professor I have ever taken at USC. He rambles on about all his accomplishments, business ventures, and brings in his undergrad students that he mentors to teach MBAs. Take this class if you are looking for a light workload, don't take it if you are looking to start a new venture.