Competencies needed by agricultural extension and education undergraduates for employment in the Iranian labor market

Agricultural higher education in general and the agricultural extension and education system in particular, have encountered worldwide challenges in the past years. For instance, employment of the graduates has been one of the major issues in this regard. There are three main reasons behind this issue in worldwide level which include lack of strong linkage strategies between higher agricultural education and the labor market, irrelevancy of agricultural curricula with real needs of the labor market, and finally decreasing governmental services to recruit the graduates. In Iran’s case, in order to improve the students’ and graduates’ employment in addition to provide the students with specific competencies needed by the labor market, different strategies and new mechanisms must be installed and implemented. Agricultural undergraduates need to practice their knowledge and skills by applying it to practical situations. To do this, one of the main solutions can be active and practical learning strategies. Engaging students in active learning methods will not only improve the learning process but also the transferability of skills. In summary, agricultural curricula must focus more on active processes that can tap students’ abilities to think and solve problems relevant to their present and future jobs and to the real needs of society.