Barriers of Entrepreneurship Development in Agricultural Higher Education System from the Viewpoint of Agricultural Graduate Students at University of Zanjan, Iran

The main purpose of this study was to identify and analyze barriers of entrepreneurship development in agricultural higher education system from viewpoints of agricultural graduate students at University of Zanjan. Research method of the study was analytical- explanatory. The statistical population consisted of 337 agricultural graduate students at University of Zanjan (N=337). According to Krejcie and Morgan table, a sample of 180 students was selected using stratified random sampling (n=180). Questionnaire was used to collect the data. A panel of experts established validity and a pilot study was conducted to establish reliability of the instrument. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the scale of importance of entrepreneurship development barriers in agricultural higher education system was calculated α=0.83. Results revealed that three variables including: large volume of theoretical courses and lack of sufficient attention to practical training in agricultural majors, lack of sufficient attention to agricultural entrepreneurship in the compilation of agricultural syllabus and course contents and no institutionalization of entrepreneurship at the college of agriculture and not being taken seriously it by managers have achieved the highest priority, respectively. The results of factor analysis showed that four factors namely educational, infrastructural- supporting, managerial and personal- psychological explained 62.49 percent of total variances of entrepreneurship development barriers in agricultural higher education system.