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Internationally, employability has recently become an increasingly controversial issue in higher education. The emergence of knowledge-based economies, accompanied by the by-products of globalization, has forced agricultural higher education systems all around the world to think twice about the quantity and quality of their courses. On one hand, there has been a surplus of highly educated graduates seeking a career, while on the other hand, potential employers complain of a skill-mismatch phenomenon. Employability is defined as the perceived ability of conquering sustainable employment appropriate to one’s qualification(s). This study evaluates factors influencing the employability of senior agricultural students at the level of Bachelor of Science (BSc) using a descriptive-correlation survey methodology. A sample of 274 out of 979 senior agricultural students was selected from agricultural faculties of five universities located in the western provinces of Iran through a stratified random sampling technique. Students showed moderate employability levels, which were significantly different depending on their field of study. The path analysis technique revealed that social class, university obligations, mastery in generic competencies, and agricultural background were the most important factors affecting students’ perceived employability, respectively.

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Conservation of environment as one of the main pillars of human life requires the attention and effort of all people, especially women, and the prerequisite for that is the Environmental Literacy (EL). The purpose of this mixed-method research was to assess rural women's EL level, and identify appropriate methods of EL extension among them. Statistical population of the study consisted of 203,504 rural women (15-64 ages), of whom 384 women were selected as sample using modified stratified random sampling technique. In order to gather the information, a questionnaire was developed including components of environmental attitudes, concerns, knowledge, skills, and behavior. Validity of questionnaire was confirmed by a panel of expert, and its reliability was confirmed by Cronbach’s alpha (0.86–0.93). In the qualitative section, the study population consisted of experts in agriculture extension, environment and natural resources, as well as rural women. Samples were selected using purposeful sampling and snowball technique. Results of quantitative section showed that the level of EL of rural women was moderate (M= 61.427, SD= 8.003) and means of environmental knowledge (M= 10.292, SD= 3.293) and concern (M= 11.926, SD= 2.328) were lower than other dimensions. MANOVA analysis also revealed that there were significant differences in level of EL of rural women among townships of Kermanshah Province with different degrees of agricultural development. Rural women in more developed regions had higher environmental knowledge and skills, but their environmental behavior was similar to underdeveloped and developing regions. The results of the qualitative section also indicated that EL extension methods of women in the villages of different regions were almost the same, but the women from the developed villages had higher tendency to participatory extension methods. Results from this study could contribute to improvement of environmental program in order to promote EL across the society.

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Environmental Literacy (EL) is recognized as a fundamental component in directing individuals' environmental preservation behavior. This descriptive-correlation research was conducted with the main objective of explaining the environmental literacy of eco-villages’ students. Data were collected from 175 high school students, selected through census, living in eco-villages in western Iran (n= 175). Findings showed that students' EL was moderate. Three dimensions of EL, including knowledge, attitude, and behavior, were higher in students living in developed Eco-villages than in developing and less developed Eco-villages. Gender, father's job, field of study, and level of Eco-village development had a significant effect on students' EL. However, the effect of educational level and participation in environmental training courses was insignificant. The results of stepwise regressions revealed that the number of years of parents’ education religiosity, study hours per week, and satisfaction with living in rural areas explain 49% of the variance of students' environmental literacy.