Navigating Entrepreneurship
An advising framework that helps Stanford GSB students build their entrepreneurship education from 50+ electives.
product strategy · user research · information architecture
Role
Experiential Entrepreneurship Intern @ Stanford GSB, Center for Entrepreneurial Studies
Collaborators
Director of Experiential Entrepreneurship, Center staff
Timeline
Summer 2026
Tools
Figma, Claude Code
01 — Problem
Students couldn't find resources
70%
of MBA students arrive interested in entrepreneurship
50+
entrepreneurship electives offered by Stanford GSB
6
entrepreneurship electives taken on average
Over 100
entrepreneurship courses across all 7 Stanford schools
Most GSB students want to explore entrepreneurship, but there are more courses offered than anyone can possibly take. From experiential classes to venture exploration programs, students have plenty of opportunities to pursue at Stanford, and very little guidance on how to choose between them.
What I heard
Each of the 12 staff members I interviewed said the same thing: students didn't know a resource existed until someone happened to mention it.
02 — Discovery
Pivoting after the prototype
It started with an audit of 40+ Center websites, newsletters, and platforms. Analytics showed low traffic to resource pages and short engagement when students did visit, suggesting they weren’t finding resources by browsing. Every staff member confirmed it: students learned about resources by word of mouth.
My first instinct was to build. I prototyped an LLM chatbot to bring tailored resources to each student directly.
Building it revealed the real gap: to advise consistently, the chatbot needed a framework the Center didn’t have. Each advisor had their own undocumented model of how courses fit together, so we set the chatbot aside to build that foundation first.
Audit
Reviewed 40+ Center websites, newsletters, and platforms.
2
Staff interviews
Every staff member reported students lacking resource awareness.
3
Chatbot prototype
Built an LLM assistant designed to tailor resources to individual students.
4
Missing framework
Realized that advisors had no shared model for how courses fit together.
5
Course stacking
Designed the framework: 5 layers, 3 student pathways, 2 impact tracks.
04 — Final Frameworks
Course Stacking
Think of each category of electives as a layer within a stack. Stacking courses from each layer is a strategy for building your education around entrepreneurship and venture exploration.
Why: students take about six electives out of 50+, so grouping courses by what they teach helps them spread their choices across different kinds of learning instead of doubling up on one.
Startup Fundamentals
Case-based classes following the arc of a startup and lessons in entrepreneurial management
Functional
Round out your skill set by learning critical functions through the perspective of entrepreneurial contexts
Industry-Specific
Dive into innovation within industries of interest, exploring nuances and deepening industry connections
Experiential
Hands-on learning to identify and evaluate the viability of a new venture
Useful for Entrepreneurs
GSB courses that provide valuable skills that are not exclusively entrepreneurial
Impact: Ecopreneurship
Solve climate and sustainability challenges through entrepreneurship
Impact: Social Innovation
Impact the world through founding mission-oriented organizations
Three student pathways
Why pathways: 70% of MBA students arrive interested in entrepreneurship, but at very different levels of conviction, and most GSB founders launch 3+ years after graduating. Each pathway maps courses and programs across both MBA years, the summer, and post-graduation, so every student can see a plan that fits where they are.
High-Conviction Entrepreneur
High conviction entrepreneurs come to the GSB with the purpose of starting a business and pursue dedicated, entrepreneurial learning.
Strategic Tester
Intentionally testing whether an entrepreneurial career – as a founder or early joiner – is the right fit. They come to the GSB ready to build an entrepreneurial mentality and skill set for potential future use.
Open-Minded Explorer
Open-minded to exploring different domains and career paths, often landing on entrepreneurship after discovering an idea or meeting a team through other classes, work experiences, or co-curricular activities.
06 — Outcome
Now part of GSB advising
Course stacking now anchors the Center's student presentations and has been shared with academic advisors across the GSB as the standard for entrepreneurial education guidance. It also provides any future AI advising projects the shared framework it was missing.
Lesson
Look one level deeper
The right product is often one level deeper than the one you set out to build. By setting our original idea aside and listening to what students and advisors actually needed, I delivered something more impactful than if I'd stuck with the chatbot.
Lesson
AI is only as good as the systems underneath it
My chatbot could surface resources, but without a shared framework, it had no consistent way to decide what to recommend. Building that foundation first means any future AI tool can advise the way the Center actually wants students to learn.
How I'd measure success
Time for students to answer key questions
Because the framework’s impact plays out over a full MBA, I’d measure it through advising itself: whether advisors give consistent recommendations to similar students, whether more students build a balanced stack across layers, and whether more apply to experiential courses earlier.