agricultural students

In today's era, characterized by fluctuating job markets and dynamic business environments, personal attributes such as career adaptability and proactive personality will increasingly influence the post-graduation career trajectory of students. In this context, the research literature shows that career adaptability and proactive personality play an undeniable role in the formation of students' entrepreneurial intention, which is considered an important prerequisite for starting a business. Theoretical evidence suggests that their adaptability resources influence entrepreneurial intention among students. Moreover, the development of career adaptability is intricately linked to a proactive personality, which enables individuals to discern opportunities and devise apt solutions amid uncertain environments, as posited by the Career Construction Theory. In this context, empirical exploration into the nexus of a proactive personality, career adaptability, and entrepreneurial intention remains scarce. Hence, this study aimed to examine the mediating influence of career adaptability between proactive personality and entrepreneurial intention among agricultural students. By fulfilling this research objective, not only does this study contribute to the depth of literature on entrepreneurial intention, but it also sheds light on the significance of fostering career adaptability among agricultural students.

The research adopted a quantitative approach, employing survey methodology and a cross-sectional time frame for data collection and correlational-causal data processing for analysis. The statistical population comprised fourth-year undergraduate agricultural students enrolled in public universities across Iran. Employing the inverse square root method, a sample of 384 students was selected utilizing a multi-stage sampling technique, wherein two universities were randomly chosen from each of the five regions under the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology, amounting to a total of ten universities. Data were gathered from students enrolled in the selected universities. The research utilized questionnaires assessing entrepreneurial intention (6 items), proactive personality (3 items), and career adaptability (12 items), designed on a five-point Likert scale within the native Porsline system and distributed online. The validity of the research instruments was ensured through reviews and confirmation by a panel of agricultural education experts. Additionally, reliability was established via a pilot study and calculation of Cronbach's alpha coefficient (α > 0.7). The measurement model's validity was affirmed through factor loading calculations and assessments of convergent validity, discriminant validity, and reliability, utilizing Cronbach's alpha coefficient and composite reliability (α and CR > 0.7; AVE > 0.5; HTMT < 0.85). Structural equation modeling, employing the partial least squares approach, was employed for data analysis. The SmartPLS4 software facilitated the data analysis process.

The research findings empirically validated the mediating role of career adaptability in the relationship between proactive personality and entrepreneurial intention among agricultural students (β = 0.271, t = 5.174, p = 0.001). Notably, the results also indicate a direct influence of proactive personality on the entrepreneurial intention of the surveyed students (β = 0.291, t = 4.077, p = 0.001). Moreover, this positive effect is evident in both pathways: the direct relationship between proactive personality and entrepreneurial intention and the relationship mediated by career adaptability. Consequently, the career adaptability variable assumes a complementary mediating role in the relationship between proactive personality and entrepreneurial intention among agricultural students. This study highlights the significance of proactive personality and career adaptability as pivotal antecedents shaping the entrepreneurial intention of agricultural students. Thus, agricultural students with a proactive disposition can enhance their entrepreneurial intention by fostering their career adaptability. Furthermore, the research findings highlight that both direct and indirect effects exhibit comparable strength, collectively explicating 43.5% of the variance in entrepreneurial intention among agricultural students. Hence, enhancing students' career adaptability is indispensable for fostering entrepreneurial intention within agricultural universities.

The findings demonstrate that the career adaptability of agricultural students, serving as a psychological resource, significantly influences the development of their entrepreneurial intention. Furthermore, a proactive personality trait shapes career adaptability. Thus, this research emphasizes that the formation of entrepreneurial intention among agricultural students relies on personal resources, encompassing both career adaptability and proactive personality. Consequently, agricultural higher education institutions aspiring to cultivate entrepreneurial intentions among their students should prioritize initiatives aimed at enhancing career adaptability. These efforts could include organizing educational workshops and inviting successful entrepreneurs. Similarly, fostering proactive personalities can be achieved through empowerment programs and related activities. In essence, the insights collected from this study can inform the design of targeted programs geared toward instilling entrepreneurial intentions among agricultural students. To foster entrepreneurial intention among agricultural students, agricultural higher education institutions are advised to enhance students' career adaptability by engaging entrepreneurs from the agricultural sector and organizing diverse educational workshops, including those focusing on soft skills development. Moreover, initiatives aimed at cultivating a proactive personality among students, such as psychological empowerment programs, can further facilitate the enhancement of their career adaptability. By implementing these strategies, institutions can effectively prepare agricultural students to embark on entrepreneurial endeavors in the agricultural domain.

Medicinal plants in Iran are one of the sectors that have a high potential in to creat diverse and profitable job opportunities and can play an important role in eliminating the unemployment of agricultural graduates. The study aimed to identify the factors affecting the tendency of agricultural students of Tabriz University to work in the field of medicinal plants. This research was applied and descriptive-correlational method was performed. The statistical population of this study was 548 students in the last year of B.Sc. in different fields of agriculture at Tabriz University. The sample size (225) was determined by using the Krejcie-Morgan table, and the students were selected by stratified sampling with proportional assignment.  The data collection tool was a questionnaire in four sections with 86 questions. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify the factors affecting students' tendency toward employment of medicinal plants in the form of two groups of promoter and inhibitory factors. The results of factor analysis showed that the promoter variables were in 5 factors that explained 57% of the total variance. The driving factors were: motivational-supportive, entrepreneurial, educational-research, and supervisory factors that the role of a motivation-supportive factor was more than other factors. Inhibitory variables were also included in 5 factors: infrastructure, lack of risk-taking spirit, resource constraints, entrepreneurial barriers, and economic barriers, which explained 47% of the total variance and the role of infrastructure barriers was more than other factors.

Increasing rate of unemployment among the graduates of the higher education system has been developed into one of the major socio- economic problems in Iran. One of the important strategies is to prepare students to have an entrepreneurial intention and become entrepreneurs, as a result of which entrepreneurial abilities and skills they acquire in universities can be very effective in this field. In this research, which was conducted with a quantitative paradigm and causal-relational method, the entrepreneurial intention of students was analyzed based on psychological capital and career adaptability. The statistical population was the senior bachelor agriculture students in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Razi University in the academic year 2022-2023 (N=470), which 207 were selected based on Cochran's sampling formula with a stratified random sampling method. For data collection were used Luthans et al. (2007) Psychological Capital questionnaire, Savickas and Porfeli (2012) career adaptability questionnaire and Liñán et al. (2011) Entrepreneurial Intention questionnaire. Data was analyzed applying SPSS26 and AMOS24. Results of structural equation modeling showed that psychological capital and career adaptability had positive and significant effects on entrepreneurial intention and explains 31% of its variance changes. Therefore, it can be concluded that psychological capital and career adaptability important and facilitating variables in the entrepreneurship development of students. The results of this research can have good results for professors and educational planners, and they can use it to understand how the factors that form the foundation and influence the intentions and development of entrepreneurial behaviors of students.

Although researches show that the formation of entrepreneurial intention is based on social and psychological capital; but linear relationships, as well as ignoring gender, may not clearly explain the formation of the mechanism of entrepreneurial intention. Based on this, the main purpose of the present study was to compare the linear and non-linear effect of social capital on the entrepreneurial intention of agricultural students with the mediation of psychological capital, which was done separately by gender for a deeper understanding. The statistical population of the research consisted of final-year undergraduate agricultural students in the public universities in the academic year 2021-2022. In this regard, 384 questionnaires, designed in a five-option Likert scale and collected by multi-stage sampling method, were analyzed using the PLS-SEM algorithm in Smart Pls4 software. The reliability and face validity of the instrument were confirmed through ordinal coefficient theta and an expert panel. The results showed that in female students, the nonlinear model of the effect of social capital on the entrepreneurial intention with the mediation of psychological capital is superior to the linear model. But in male students, the model is only linear. In addition, the results of the research revealed that the mechanism of the effect of the studied structures in male and female students is different in some ways. The results of the present research can help education officials and planners to adopt policies and practices for male and female students that will promote their entrepreneurial intentions.

Unemployment of agricultural and natural resources graduates is one of the challenges that can be solved to some extent by forming agricultural cooperatives. Agricultural cooperatives in the various fields of production, distribution of inputs, conversion and processing, and marketing of agricultural products will have the necessary potential to create employment for agricultural graduates. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors affecting the behavioral intention of agricultural students towards forming agricultural cooperatives using the theory of planned behavior (TPB). The statistical population was all undergraduate students of agricultural and natural resources college of Lorestan University in the academic year 1400. Using Cochran's formula, 363 students were determined as the sample size. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire whose validity and reliability were confirmed by content validity and Cronbach's alpha coefficient, respectively. Data analysis was performed using SPSS and PLS software. The results showed that the behavioral intention of students towards forming agricultural cooperatives is influenced by the variables of attitude, mental norms, and behavioral control, and those three variables are also affected by the three variables of behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, and controlled beliefs, respectively. According to the results, the effect of students' behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs and controlled beliefs on their attitude, subjective beliefs and perceived behavioral control towards the formation of agricultural cooperatives is significant. Also, the three variables of attitude, mental beliefs, and perceived behavioral control have a significant effect on students' behavioral intention towards forming agricultural cooperatives. Those three variables explained 62.7 percent of the variance of students' intention variable. The achievements of this research can guide cooperative planners and those in charge of the employment of students in the field of agriculture and natural resources.

Internship is a unique training program that purpose is to integrate education with experimental programs and activities. It is necessary to examine the weaknesses of the implementation of this course in the pas t years, successful experiences of implementing this program in other countries and receiving and summarizing the opinions of the s takeholders of this program for improving the effectiveness of internships for agricultural s tudents. In order to implementation of the Memorandum of Cooperation between the Minis tries of Science, Research and Technology and Agriculture-Jahad and the law on increasing the productivity of agriculture and natural resources, that he purpose of which is to use the capacities of executive and governmental bodies in the implementation of the internship plan for agricultural s tudents, this research was conducted with the aim of inves tigating the obs tacles and challenges of the implementation of the internship program of agricultural science s tudents in the Minis try of Agriculture-Jahad by using a qualitative research method and a deductive approach. The s tatis tical population of this s tudy was all educational deputies and the ins tructors working in the Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Centers of the country in the academic year 2021-2022 (N= 64), of which 38 people were selected by purposive sampling method. As a result of the content analysis, the challenges of implementing the s tudents' internship were categorized in; the course curriculum, implementation of the course, internship ins tructors, s tudents (interns), the organizational unit accepting the intern, and the college and university. The mos t important challenges from the respondents` point of view included the s tudents' lack of motivation to actively participate in this course due to the uncertainty of their job opportunities, lack of monitoring and detailed visits by the university and the Minis try of Agricultural Jihad on the implementation of the course in the units accepting interns, the lack of motivation of trainers to optimally implement the internship course, and the lack of coordination and cooperation between universities and units conducting internships. Encouraging s tudents to participate in skill training and methods, active cooperation of universities with executive bodies in the implementation of practical trainings and equipping organizational unit accepting the intern with facilities and equipment needed for the implementation of the internship training course were among the sugges tions of this research.

Achieving sustainable development requires the training of specialized and competent human resources through educational centers and institutions. While, one of the concerns of higher agricultural education, especially in recent years, is the issue of student retention. The purpose of this causal-relational research was to determine the factors influencing the retention of agricultural students. The statistical population was the undergraduate students of in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Razi University in the academic year 2021-2022 (N=901), which 270 were selected based on Bartlett's table with a stratified random sampling method. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire, which was used for its reliability and validity through ordinal coefficient theta (Ө= 0.87) and an expert panel. Exploratory factor analysis showed that factors related to professors, support-management factor, environmental and educational facilities and personal factor were extracted as effective factors on student retention. These factors explain about 73% of the variance related to the retention of agricultural students. The results of the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests did not show significant difference between the viewpoints of male and female students and different fields and educational degrees of students. While, there was a significant difference between the viewpoints of rural and urban students regarding the factors affecting the retention of students. Based on the findings, Creating motivation and interest in students by professors, supporting the government in creating jobs for agricultural graduates, providing greenhouses and agricultural land to carry out practical activities in agricultural colleges can create situation for retention of students.

The following research aims to provide a structural model for the development of essential soft skills in agricultural students. In this regard, a mixed approach (qualitative-quantitative) was used. In the qualitative part of the research, the data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 19 Participants (faculty members of agricultural majors) who are expert in the subject of research. Participants were selected using purposeful and snowball sampling methods. In qualitative phase, "grounded theory strategy" was used to design the initial model of the research. In the quantitative part of the research, after confirming the reliability and validity of the instrument, data were collected from 384 of the senior students of agricultural majors. In order to evaluate the research model, Structural equation modeling with partial least squares approach was used. The results of the research confirmed the research model. Based on this model, the factors affecting on essential soft skills and essential soft skills consequences for agricultural students were clarified.

Recognize opportunities and take advantage of them. The present causal research was conducted with the aim of the relationship between Presence knowledge and entrepreneurial capabilities of agricultural students in Razi University. Participants in this study were 988 students majoring in agriculture and natural resources of Razi University in the academic year 1401-1400 and in three levels of bachelor, master and doctorate (N = 988) that based on Krejcie and Morgan's table, 276 of them were selected as the sample by stratified random sampling with proportional assignment. For data collection, two questionnaires of information literacy (Presence knowledge) of the American College of Library and Research Libraries and the standard questionnaire of entrepreneurship of Durham City Council were used. The formal and visual validity of the research tool approved by professors entrepreneurship also the professors from the Faculty of Agriculture who had experience in the subject. Convergent validity was performed by calculation (AVE) which was equal to 0.8. The reliability of the research instrument was evaluated by the ordinal theta coefficient, which was acceptable. Based on the results, doctoral students had higher Presence knowledge and entrepreneurial ability. But the level of information aristocracy and entrepreneurial ability of undergraduate students was below average. According to Spearman Correlation coefficient, students' Presence knowledge and its dimensions had a positive Correlation with entrepreneurship. Based on the results of sequential regression, the dimensions of information Presence knowledge between 20 to 30% of students' entrepreneurial ability.

The aim of this study was to explain the structural relationships between the components of essential soft skills in agricultural students (9 soft skills). In this regard, to achieve the aim of the study, the fuzzy DEMATEL technique was used. The views of 11 academic experts were collected through a questionnaire, based on the Likert scale. The results showed that communication skills, learning skills, and leadership skills are the most effective components, respectively. Also, findings indicated that the adaptability skills component is the most influential component. The results also show that five components (communication skills, emotional intelligence skills, leadership skills, learning skills, ethical skills) are causal factors and four components (problem-solving and decision-making skills, time management skills, teamwork skills, adaptability skills) Are effect factors. Thus, in higher agricultural education, while paying attention to the development of all essential soft skills, more focus and investment should be made on the development of communication skills, learning skills, and leadership skills, respectively.

 it is predicted that education that provides students with access to deeper learning opportunities can lead to their personal and professional growth and development. Regarding this issue, the purpose of this research was to assess the impact of access to deeper learning opportunities on the development of entrepreneurial capabilities of students in the Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. The statistical population of this study was 1000 active students in the university. Using stratified random sampling method with proportional assignment according to the table of Bartlett et al. (2001), 213 students were selected as the research sample. The research tool for data collection was a researcher–made questionnaire. The formal validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by an expert panel (including faculty members of agricultural education and entrepreneurship).Reliability of the main indexes of the questionnaire was determined based on Theta (θ) reliability coefficient (0.83, 0.87). Data analysis was analyzed using SPSS26 and SAS software. The research findings based on the correlation matrix showed that a significant positive relationship between access to deeper learning opportunities and entrepreneurial capabilities of the students. Also, the canonical correlation analysis between 8 dimensions of access to deeper learning opportunities and 11 dimensions of entrepreneurial capabilities of agricultural students led to two pairs of important canonical variables of individual development based on self-awareness and learning approach with correlation rates of 0.67 and 0.37, respectively. The results showed that providing deeper learning conditions and contexts for students increases or strengthens their entrepreneurial capabilities.

Since universities in Iran play a significant role in preparing human resources achieve advancing goals ofthe country, evaluating emotional intelligence (self-motivation, self-awareness, self-control, empathy, socialskills) and its role in educational achievement of the s tudents can lead to better planning and providing moreuseful solutions to the higher education sys tem obs tacles. Thus, this research was aimed at:" s tudying the effectof emotional intelligence's dimensions on the educational achievement of Agricultural S tudent's Razi Universityof Kermanshah" in the academic year 2020-2021. For this purpose, a quantitative research method based onthe survey was used. And the s tatis tical population of the s tudy consis ted of 812 undergraduate agriculturals tudents of Razi University of Kermanshah who were selected by s tratified sampling techniques with theproportional allocation and using Cochran formula 180 of them. The main ins trument for data collection wasa s tandard ques tionnaire of emotional intelligence of Siberia Schering (1996), validity of which was evaluatedby experts’ panel, and its reliability using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and composite reliability index wasanalyzed and confirmed due to the fact that the rate was higher than 0.7 for all the cons tructs. Also, the scale usedin answering the ques tionnaire was based on the Likert scale (s trongly disagree to s trongly agree). S tructuralequation modeling (SEM), as a multivariate technique, and Smart-PLS software was used. According to pathanalysis results, dimensions of emotional intelligence (except empathy) have significant roles in improvingthe educational achievement of agricultural s tudents among agricultural s tudents of the Razi University ofKermanshah. Empirical results showed that the agricultural S tudents' academic achievement depends on theiremotional intelligence level and dimensions, and their emotional intelligence can explain 33% of agriculturalS tudents' educational achievement variance. Research findings offer a new theoretical framework for futuretheory development.

Achieving the goals of sustainable agriculture significantly depends on the critical thinking skills of the actors in this area. Accordingly, agricultural technical and vocational schools strive to develop the critical thinking skills of future farmers who are currently studying in these schools. Achieving this is not possible without a proper understanding of the critical thinking skills of agricultural students and development of a comprehensive model to strengthen them. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop a model for strengthening the critical thinking skills of agricultural students in the technical and vocational schools in Iran by using social cognitive and autopoietic systems theories (N = 4939). Out of the population of the interest, 282 students were selected as a statistical sample using a multi-stage sampling method. The data collection tool was a questionnaire, which its validity confirmed using the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and the Average Shared Variance (ASV) indices. Besides, the reliability of the instrument was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha coefficients and composite reliability (CR). Findings showed that the students’ critical thinking skills are divers according to their schools type. Moreover, students’ observational experiences had the greatest direct effect on their critical thinking skills (t = 4.94, β = 0.30) which followed by perceived self-efficacy (t = 3.61, β = 0.27), social confirmation (t = 2.86, β = 0.17), and immediate individual experiences (t = 2.68, β = 0.14), respectively. These factors could account for 53 % of the variance of students' critical thinking skills.

Today's universities must meet the growing needs of society in various areas, including education, research, entrepreneurship and manpower management, including students and faculty members at the national and international levels. In fact, the university is responsible for training specialized and skilled manpower, as the most important asset of society. The essential role expected of the university is to prepare a scientist, capable and prosperous human being in society. Therefore, according to the growing needs of society and identifying the competencies needed by students to face society in this study, we seek to determine the model of competencies of agricultural students based on a qualitative method. The statistical population of this study included professors of agricultural universities, agricultural specialists in the public and private sectors. The research tool was semi-structured interviews with 28 people. Also, data analysis was performed in three stages of open, axial and selective coding. The results showed that the causal conditions needed for the creating of the core theme (competencies of agricultural students) include communication skills, experimental and practical skills, entrepreneurial skills, managerial skills and team and group skills. Interventional (effective) conditions also include the presence of outstanding professors, the use of teaching aids and recognition of the economic potential of the region. In addition, the background conditions and the necessary context for the emergence of the core theme, namely the competencies of agricultural students, were: the university education methods, creating interest and motivation in students, and communication with leading agricultural activists and frontier farmers. Action and reaction strategies also included lack of attention to the needs of the labor market, using emotional intelligence and the problems faced to the agricultural sector and the awareness with them

Today, growth of entrepreneurship training programs in universities and higher education centers are based on the pre assumption that entrepreneurship skills are acquired. The purpose of this study was to extract factors affecting entrepreneurship skills of students in agriculture training centers in three provinces of Fars, Khorasan Razavi, and Alborz. The research method was applied in terms of purpose and exploratory in terms of mixed data type. The data collection tool was a researcher- made questionnaire, content validity of which was approved by agricultural extension and education experts and its reliability was estimated to be 0.91 using ordinal theta coefficient. The independent variables consisted of educational, psychological, economic, and socio and cultural variables and the dependent variable was entrepreneurship skills. The statistical population of the research is last semester students in agriculture training centers in Fars, Khorasan Razavi, and Alborz provinces in 2018(670). The sample size was determined using Morgan table, 245 people and were selected by stratified random sampling with proportional assignment. The findings of spearman correlation test showed that factors: educational, psychological, economic, and socio and cultural had a significant positive correlation with entrepreneurship skills. Applying interactive models of structural Equation Modeling (SEM) indicated that the most important factor affecting entrepreneurship skills among respondents is psychological factor with the path coefficient of 0/63. Educational and economic factors affected entrepreneurship skills with path coefficients of 0/24 and 0/23.

Universities and higher education centers are responsible for the missions of training the expert force, and expanding of technology, innovation and creativity. Student cooperatives can play a significant role in developing the skills and abilities necessary to prepare students to enter in the labor market. Therefore, this research devoted to identifying characteristics of successful student cooperative in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Razi University, through grounded theory methodology. The population for this study consisted of students majoring in agriculture who are members of the Pishgaman Student Cooperative in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Razi University. Interviewing was the main tool for gathering data and using purposeful sampling method and snowball technique. The results showed the characteristics such as a "Participation and Cooperation", "Necessary Facilities and Infrastructure", "Appropriate Economic Conditions", "Entrepreneurship and Creativity", "Implementation and Development of Sustainable Agriculture", "Successful Management" and "Appropriate Marketing" were the most important characteristics of successful student cooperative.

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between psychological capital and              self-employment intention of agricultural students at University of Arak. This research was a quantitative and descriptive-correlational study which was conducted using a survey method. The target population of the study contained of all B.Sc. students in agriculture faculty of University of Arak (N= 400), from whom 115 students were selected using SPSS Sample Power software. Simple random sampling was employed in selection of the respondents. Data was collected through a questionnaire that its validity confirmed by a panel of experts. Its reliability was confirmed by calculating Cronbach's alpha coefficient which was greater than 0.8 for all parts of the questionnaire. SPSS and AMOS statistical packages were used to analyze the data. The results indicated that the psychological capital and self-employment intention of students in most cases were at high and intermediate levels, respectively. The findings of structural equation modeling revealed that there was a positive significant relationship between psychological capital and students' self-employment intention. Furthermore, the results of correlation analysis showed that there was a positive significant relationship between psychological capital components (self-efficacy, hope, resilience, and optimism) and students' self-employment intention. Stepwise regression also revealed that self-efficacy and hope can significantly predict 31 percent of variation in the students' self-employment intention. The result of this study can be used to promote the self-employment intention of agricultural students in Iran.

Social Network Sites (SNSs), as a tool for conveying educational messages, have a high position in the agricultural education system. The use of SNSs can affect different aspects of the educational system. Numerous studies have examined the relationship between the use of SNSs and various variables of educational system outputs. This study seeks to identify the factors affecting the educational use of social media and academic performance of agricultural students. The statistical population was 111,528 students of public agricultural colleges across the country in the academic year 2018-2019, of which 400 students were selected from eight universities in the country using Morgan table and multi-stage random sampling method. Data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire using Likert Scale whose morphological validity was confirmed by a number of professors in the field of agricultural extension and Persian literature, and its content validity was confirmed by Average Variance Extracted (AVE between 0.64 and 0.73 for different variables) and reliability was confirmed using sequental theta (Ɵ between 0.85 and 0.92 for different variables). To investigate the effect of variables on students’ academic performance, t, f and Pearson correlation coefficient were used, respectively, and the findings showed that the most common use of SNSs among students is related to communicating with friends and family. There is a significant difference between the educational use of these networks by male and female students and also between students of different educational levels, but no significant difference was observed between different disciplines. It was also found that the rate of educational use of social networks among students who used these networks for educational purposes, has a positive effect on their academic performance, so it is suggested that educational administrators and planners as well as university professors pay more attention to the inclusion of these media in the curriculum.

Academic performance of students is one of the main success indicators of academic activities in higher education systems. Much of the education systems' efforts are aimed at achieving high academic performance. In this regard, the main purpose of present study was to analyze the effects of information literacy, self-directed learning, critical thinking, and academic self-efficacy on academic performance of agricultural higher education students. This research is an applied study. The statistical population was agricultural students of Iran public universities (N=236973). From whom 386 students were selected as a sample through stratified random sampling method. Research tool was a researcher-made questionnaire which its validity confirmed by a group of Shiraz University's experts in the field of "agricultural extension and education" and "educational sciences". Ordinal theta coefficients demonstrated an acceptable reliability for the research tool (θ=0.71-0.78). The results of path analysis showed that the four variables self-directed learning, information literacy, academic self-efficacy, and critical thinking skills had significant positive effects on academic performance of agricultural students. Furthermore, the independent variables could account for 35.8 per cent of the variance of academic performance of agricultural students. Finally agricultural universities and colleges were recommended to make changes in their educational processes in order to increase academic performance of students.