A master of Entrepreneurship degree programme aimed at business people and aspiring entrepreneurs will be launched in Queenstown in July by the University of Otago.
School of Business dean, Prof George Benwell, said the programme was a logical addition to the university's presence in Queenstown, and would be delivered at the Queenstown Resort College.
Prof Benwell said the space at QRC would provide tourism researchers with a "perfect location for their work", while the masters programme would be offered to a region which was home to many small businesses and aspiring business owners.
"Queenstown is only a flight away from Christchurch and Auckland as well as the east coast of Australia, so it is perfectly placed for people in those locations interested in the masters degree," he said.
The Master of Entrepreneurship degree was a three-semester qualification, with students studying seven taught courses in the first two semesters (the postgraduate diploma level papers) and then working on a practicum (the masters component) with the help of an academic supervisor in the third semester.
Students could do the latter project anywhere in the world.
Classes would be taught in intensive three-day block courses held every six weeks.
The first classes begin on July 20.
The block course system would allow students to work on their assignments between classes.
It also offered opportunities to apply their skills directly to the new businesses they were developing, with international students able to work up to 20 hours a week in local businesses.
"Queenstown is New Zealand's adventure capital.
Therefore, the location should be attractive to students wishing to develop the necessary knowledge and skills to set up innovative new ventures in the tourism, adventure and leisure hospitality sectors," Prof Benwell said.
The resort was also near one of the most "distinctive pinot noir-growing regions in the world" and the programme might be of interest to people wanting to establish wine-related businesses.
Several established entrepreneurs and "angel investors" had also moved to the Queenstown, Wanaka and Central Otago areas in recent years for business reasons, and could be available to act as mentors and advisers for any student entrepreneurs, he said.
