Competencies developed by students while working in nutrition junior enterprises

Introduction : Reflections arise on how junior companies have been structuring themselves alongside the teaching dynamics in Brazilian universities and their effective contributions to the professional training and development of skills of their members. Thus, this study aimed to identify competencies perceived by students in nutrition junior enterprises in Brazil and compare them according to their profile (time of participation, number of positions and weekly workload). Methods : Cross-sectional study, carried out with a representative sample of students working in nutrition junior enterprises. Self-reported variables were collected on sociodemographic, occupational, technical-scientific performance data, aptitude for entering the job market, intention of professional activity and perception of the skills developed. Pearson's Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test was used to determine differences in the perception of acquired skills between the performance profiles. Results : Participation in junior enterprises influenced the development of various entrepreneurial skills that change according to the student's performance profile in junior enterprises. The greater dedication of time and activities in junior companies provided recognition of significant skills such as leadership (p<0.001), problem-solving ability (p<0.01), and social responsibility (p=0.05). On the other hand, only a quarter of students took courses on entrepreneurship and only two in ten were willing to become an entrepreneur after academic training. Conclusion : This study presents which entrepreneurial skills are most developed through participation in a junior enterprise. This research can contribute to promoting scientific data on entrepreneurship education, which is still scarce in developing countries. Furthermore, it can encourage the participation of students in junior enterprises and promote support for this activity among professors and universities.


INTRODUCTION
University instruction should be guided by the expansion of the theoretical and practical training of the student, to lead him to the formation of a professional identity.As the university enlarges its role, traditional academic tasks are expanded, according to the requirements of newly emerging functions. 1Thus, extension projects and practical experiences, such as the one provided by Junior Enterprises (JE), emerged in universities intending to adapt academic training to the demands of the labor market, expand professional qualification and competency formation, through the association of technical-scientific knowledge with practical experiences. 2nsidering the concept proposed by Junior Enterprises Global Network 3 and the Brazilian legal framework, 4 JE are defined as associations constituted and managed exclusively by students who attend higher education, intending to carry out projects and services that contribute to academic and professional development, training them for the labor market.By universities, Junior Enterprises are understood as extension projects that favor dialogue between the community and the university, providing the students with a practical experience that strengthens their academic training engaged with the demands of society. 5rrently, there are more than 19 Confederations of Junior Enterprises in 17 countries, one of which is continental, with an annual income of around 16 million euros. 6Brazil has the highest concentration of JE worldwide, totaling 1,344 enterprises recognized by the Brazilian Confederation of Junior Enterprises, called Brasil Júnior.Among these, 18 exclusively cover the Nutrition course.The increased number of JE is relevant, reaching incomes above 49 million reais in 2020, from about 34,366 projects that year. 7e importance of JE in technical-scientific training is consolidated by higher autonomy in learning and the formation of competencies. 8The formation of competencies at its different levels is a frequent theme in the educational and professional spheres.It is noteworthy that knowledge, skills, and attitudes are only converted into individual competencies when used. 9 Therefore, the development of competencies depends on a combination of knowledge, know-how, experiences, and behaviors exercised in specific contexts. 10rticipation in a JE is an experience in which students can develop and contextualize a set of knowledge, overcoming the limits of a subject experienced in the classroom. 2,10,11ecifically, regarding the new demands of the Nutrition professional's labor market, the expansion of their professional and social role can be observed.It is noted that the nutritionist has been taking on roles that go beyond a liberal professional in the health area, but also an organizational professional who therefore needs specific knowledge in management and new personal, managerial, and entrepreneurial competencies. 12,13However, there is a certain weakness in the Brazilian Curriculum Guidelines for the Nutrition Course in encouraging the development of these competencies. 13ven the above, reflections arise on how JE have been structuring themselves along with the teaching dynamics in Brazilian universities and their effective contributions to the professional training and development of competencies of their members.Thus, this study aims to identify the competencies perceived by the students and to compare them according to the performance profile in nutrition JE in Brazil.
It is worth noting that research such as this is relevant given the scarce scientific production on the contribution of JE in the technical-scientific training of students.A few published articles essentially focus on the impact of some processes or use JE as a case study. 14,15emetra.2024;19:e69914 METHODS This is an analytical, observational, cross-sectional study conducted with students working in nutrition JE in Brazil.Currently, the country has a population of around 213.3 million inhabitants, 16 with a gross domestic product of R$2.2 trillion (3rd quarter of 2021) 17 and a human development index of 0,765 (IDH). 18e identification of nutrition JE in Brazil was carried out on the website of the Brazilian Confederation of Junior Enterprises (www.portal.brasiljunior.org.br) in July 2021.From the search for the terms "nutrition" and "food", 18 nutrition JE were identified, two of which were not active. 19To take part in the study, the nutrition JE should act in the national territory, be federated, and be active.
Considering all the students who are members of nutrition JE in Brazil (n=285), a simple random sampling process was carried out, resulting in 108 participants.To calculate the sample size, the following parameters were considered: a) 95% confidence level; b) 30% response rate; c) 50% success rate estimate; d) margin of error of 7.5%; e) population size.The eligibility criteria for participation were being an active student member of any nutrition JE in Brazil and agreeing to participate in the study.Exclusion criteria were being away from the nutrition JE for more than a month and being on vacation.
The diffusion of the research took place through multiple actions such as informative text and propagation video sent by email and WhatsApp.The information provided included data from the responsible researchers, research objectives, data collection methodology, and the importance of participation.
Data was collected between August and September 2021, through a structured questionnaire, developed based on national 20,21 and international 22 studies and applied online (Google Forms).
Questionnaires were anonymous and the participation was voluntary.Sociodemographic variables were collected (age, gender, and period of study at the university), occupational (position, number of positions held, time of participation, and weekly workload), technicalscientific performance (satisfaction in working in the nutrition JE, skill to understand subjects related to the area of expertise of the nutrition JE, course of subjects on entrepreneurship and importance of participating in the nutrition JE for training), aptitude to enter the labor market, the aim of professional performance (public tender, private companies, entrepreneurship, and academic career) and on the perception of competences acquired in the nutrition JE (autonomy, commitment, courage, creativity, critical vision, disinhibition, goal seek, leadership, meeting deadlines, oratory, organization, proactivity/initiative, problem-solving, professional ambition, project development, self-confidence, social responsibility, teamwork).
The "time of participation in the nutrition JE" was categorized in less than six months and six months or more, as it represents the common periodicity for the selection of new members and change of management in the JE. 20,21The variable "number of positions" was categorized into one position and more than one position, because of the perspective that the occupation of more than one position is related to the performance of different activities, making up new experiences.And the variable "weekly workload" was categorized into less than 10 hours and 10 hours or more, to correspond to the expected time of volunteer work in extension projects in several universities. 23e competencies investigated were based on the "EntreComp conceptual models" that, together, make up some of the crucial skills for entrepreneurs. 22The competencies were presented to the interviewees, who should select, according to their perception, those developed during their work in the nutrition JE.All competencies were compared according to the students' occupation profile, investigated by the variables "participation time", "number of positions" and "weekly workload".
Demetra.2024;19:e69914 Data were tabulated in Microsoft Excel spreadsheets with double typing.Statistical analyzes were performed using Stata software, version 14.2.Descriptive analyzes were performed using absolute and relative frequencies.Pearson's Chi-square or Fisher's Exact Test was used to determine whether there was a difference in the perception of acquired competencies between the performance profiles in JE.The significance level adopted was 5% (p<0.05).The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (Approval number: 47489421.0.0000.5149;4.866.69).All participants agreed to the online form of participation in the study.

RESULTS
One hundred and twelve students working in the 16 active and federated nutrition JE in Brazil participated in the study.Most were female (89.3%), more than half were between 21 and 24 years old (52.7%), and most of the interviewees were in intermediate periods of graduation (47.7%) (Table I).reported the course of entrepreneurship subject in university (data not shown).Most interviewees declared they were able to enter the job market (71.4%),although more than half (55.5%) still did not know their intention of professional activity after graduation (Figure 1).The comparison of the competencies developed according to the occupation profile investigated by the variables "participation time", "number of positions" and "weekly workload" is presented in Table 2.
Regarding the participation time, those students who had worked for six months or more in the nutrition JE

DISCUSSION
The results showed several competencies developed during the performance in the nutrition JE; the main ones are teamwork, commitment, self-confidence, leadership, and proactivity/initiative.The study also revealed that students with more weekly dedication, occupying more positions, and working more extended periods reported more the development of disinhibition, leadership, problem-solving, and project development competencies, in addition to social responsibility, and oratory.On the other hand, those students who had less participation reported greater proportion of organizational skills and meeting deadlines.The satisfaction in participating in the nutrition JE and the facility to understand the content of related subjects were noteworthy.On the other hand, only a quarter of the students took courses on entrepreneurship and only two out of ten indicated the desire to undertake after academic formation.
The importance of JE in academic training to approach the business environment and increase the ability to enter the job market has been discussed in the literature. 2,14,24JE are "action" programs; that is, programs to encourage learning based on problems and projects, a characteristic of learning-by-doing education. 25The demand for professionals with competencies that could be developed while working in a nutrition JE is already pointed out in the Brazilian Curriculum Guidelines for the Nutrition Course, established in Resolution No. 5 of November 7, 2011: "professionals must be able to take initiatives, manage and administer both the workforce, physical and material resources, and information, in the same way, that they must be able to be entrepreneurs, managers, employers or leaders in the health team". 26 the other hand, this is the only passage in the Brazilian Curricular Guidelines that sharpens the entrepreneurial spirit.It is worth noting that the literature indicates gaps in nutritionist formation concerning the competencies improvement, such as the absence of disciplines and activities related to leadership development, decision making, administration, management, and entrepreneurship. 13It seems then that the appointment of competencies, skills and curricular contents adopted in the Brazilian Curriculum Guidelines for the Nutrition Course still do not follow the technical and scientific development of the country and do not fully meet the demands of the labor market and Brazilian society.Thus, the presence of JE in universities becomes fundamental and even more relevant, to carry out projects and services that contribute to the academic and professional development of students (training them for the job market), as well as for the socioeconomic development of a region. 27cordingly, it is observed that professional formation in Brazil is still focused on traditional education, directing students to obtain jobs in the public or private sector and, generally, neglecting entrepreneurship, considered a risky activity and distant from the reality of students. 28Therefore, it is not surprising that few students reported the study of subjects about entrepreneurship, which is also corroborated by the literature, where less than a third of courses in the health area in Brazil offer disciplines on this theme. 29It is expected that the course of entrepreneurship subjects will enable students to establish relationships and possibilities to undertaking business, recognizing themselves as citizens of law, with opportunities to align their life and career plan with their business plan. 29ditionally, more than half of the students had not defined their professional activity intention after graduation, which can be justified by the majority still attending intermediate periods, not having sufficient knowledge and experience in the areas of professional activity in Nutrition.Generally, practical activities are experienced only in the last periods, which can be corrected by working in the JE, which can provide theoretical-practical experience from the initial periods of the course, solving one of the weaknesses in the theoretical-practical relationship of universities, regarding the problem of linearity of the teaching process. 27ere is a new configuration of the nutritionist's job market, which requires an organizational professional, with specific knowledge in the management area and endowed with managerial and entrepreneurial competencies. 12It is noteworthy that the nutritionist's formation should make them capable of working in several areas, such as entrepreneurship and business, requiring competencies that go beyond the exclusively technical domain. 13Students working in nutrition JE's in Brazil receive technical, academic, personal, and professional improvement capable of complementing their formation and to correspond the training expectations of a generalist, humanist and critical professional. 5emetra.2024;19:e69914 The experience provided to students in nutrition JE corresponds not only to the practical application of theoretical knowledge but also to the development of competencies. 24These JE propose an entrepreneurial education based on a series of pedagogical measures: not excessive theoretical workload, autonomous learning, based on action and the direct participation of students, allowing learning based on experience and facilitating cooperative and interactive learning. 304,22,24 It should be noted that competencies are defined as knowing how to act, which requires mobilizing, integrating, and transferring knowledge, resources, and skills, in a professional context, 10 adding economic value to the organization and social value to the individual, 9 which reinforces the role of JE in universities.
The higher dedication in time and activities allowed for recognizing outstanding skills (disinhibition, leadership, problem-solving, and development projects, social responsibility, and oratory) for nutritionist training, who should be able to think critically, analyze social problems, and seek solutions. 26Those students who spent less time could perceive equally relevant competencies (organization and meeting deadlines), often not observed by those who present greater demands for time and activity.
As study limitation, we can mention the application of the questionnaire remotely (online), which can be a source of bias due to the interviewee's interpretation of the questions.However, conducting online surveys is a strategy used in national surveys in countries with large territorial dimensions, as it allows access to a representative sample of the target sample, especially in times of social isolation. 31It is noteworthy that the research was carried out during the Covid-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.In addition, online data collection brings lower operating cost, as well as more agility in obtaining and disseminating information. 32 is believed that this research can contribute to the promotion of scientific data on entrepreneurship education -especially in the Nutrition course, which is still scarce in the scientific literature -with a view to the performance of nutrition JE in Brazil, promoting the understanding of sociodemographic characteristics, occupational profile, and perception of developed competencies.It is worth noting that one must transpose formal entrepreneurial education, with a focus on a lot of theoretical content, which often makes students very analytical, excessively aware of problems, and averse to risks, 33 to allow them autonomous learning, based on action and experience, such as that provided by JE.

CONCLUSION
The experience of the students in nutrition junior enterprises provided the development of several competencies that changed according to the profile of the students' activity in JE.The higher dedication in time and activities in the JE provided the acknowledgment of meaningful competencies such as leadership, problem-solving skills, and social responsibility.Students who had less time for dedication and activities in JE could also develop meaningful competencies, such as organization and meeting deadlines.It is believed that the understanding of the adequate contributions of JE to the professional formation and development of students' competencies can contribute to entrepreneurial education, consistent with the reality of enterprises and capable of transforming society.Furthermore, the results of the study can stimulate the participation of students in JE, as well as promote support for JE among teachers and in higher education institutions.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Intention of professional performance of students working in nutrition junior enterprises in Brazil, 2021.

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Competencies developed by students during their work in nutrition junior enterprises in Brazil, 2021.

Table 1 .
Sociodemographic and occupational characteristics of students working in nutrition junior enterprises in Demetra.2024;19:e69914Regarding performance related to academic training, most respondents reported met expectations (99.1%), considered participation in nutrition JE important for training (99.1%), and reported facility to understand the content of related disciplines to activities developed in JE (99.0%); however, only 25.9%