Purpose: The main purpose of the present paper is to elaborate an entrepreneurial university conceptualization which could be appropriate for developing countries. A conceptualization which distinguishes between different elements of entrepreneurial universities in developing countries, and identifies the common ones. This conceptualization considers the indigenous aspects and the contextual factors. Design/methodology/approach: The authors used a qualitative approach to investigate the concept, more deeply, in developing countries. In order to do so, a series of semi structured in-depth interviews were conducted with ten experts in this domain. Coding of qualitative data--both interviews and documents--was used to identify new dimensions, elements, and variables. The experts were chosen from knowledgeable individuals in this domain in the universities, including university officials, professors, and officials of the Science and Technology Parks. It should be noted that a non-probability sampling technique, i.e. judgmental sampling were used to find the knowledgeable experts of this field of study. Findings: This study presents a conceptualization for entrepreneurial universities in the developing countries. The findings reveal that there are four main elements in the proposed entrepreneurial university conceptualization, which are as follows: resources, capabilities, mission, and impeding elements. Practical implications: The results of the present study could be used for policy making in the higher education sector of developing countries. Also, the results might be compared with the other conceptualizations in different contexts.