Shelton Ferrari was set to open a new car dealership in Fort Lauderdale, but a group of business students from Nova Southeastern University convinced the company otherwise.

The team of five students, part of an entrepreneurial program at Nova's Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship, advised the car dealer it would be wiser to open its next dealership in Pembroke Pines, based on a study of per capita incomes in that city. The Ferrari dealership eventually was sold, but the students are continuing to advise other local companies, such as Medallion, a Miami furniture manufacturer.

``When students leave here, they have a portfolio of a feasibility study, a business plan and a consulting assignment,'' said Tom Tworoger, chair of Nova's entrepreneur department.

Nova Southeastern is just one South Florida college to emphasize entrepreneurship courses in recent years in response to rising interest.

As the economy has faltered and the number of pink slips has risen, many workers have decided to start their own businesses. Additionally, new graduates, realizing their chances of securing positions at large companies have sharply declined, have been forced to rethink their careers and become their own bosses.

South Florida schools have responded to the shift in the marketplace by offering a cadre of entrepreneurial programs, courses and features.

LAUNCHING BUSINESSES

The University of Miami has established The Launch Pad, ensconced in the student center in the middle of campus. Here, students and alumni can meet with volunteers who are successful business people affiliated with the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce, the Beacon Council and other organizations. The volunteers provide one-on-one ``venture coaching'' to walk-ins.

Some 750 students have already signed up at the center, which opened a year ago with a $75,000 grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a Kansas City nonprofit dedicated to encouraging youths to become entrepreneurs.

``We want to present entrepreneurship as a viable career path, to help the students start new ventures in South Florida,'' said William Green, UM's senior vice provost and undergraduate dean.

ACROSS ALL FIELDS

Florida International University, one of eight Kauffman Foundation centers around the country, has been emphasizing entrepreneurship since 2004, when the university received a $3 million grant from the foundation to create programs and courses. While undergraduate and graduate business students have an entrepreneurship track, courses also are sprinkled throughout the university in the areas of religion, law, chemistry and other fields of study.

Irma Becerra-Fernandez, director of the Pino Global Entrepreneurship Center at FIU, teaches an entrepreneurialcourse on information technology. She focuses on social networking and Web-based businesses, and builds her curriculum around the concept of having fun. Modeling her class after the TV show Shark Tank, Becerra-Fernandez holds a mini-competition for students to present their best business ideas. She brings in prominent business leaders as judges. One year, the winning team developed a MySpace widget and won a video camera from MySpace Latina.

Two of her top students who graduated in 2008 went on to start a successful Miami energy business called Veterans Energy Solutions. Russell and Kevin Otway, who are twin brothers and both military veterans, conduct energy audits on homes and buildings, and they install energy-efficient and renewable-energy systems.

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