An Explanation of the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Model in the Context of Agricultural Higher Education System in Iran

considering the lack of experience in the agriculture sector of Iran for developing such ecosystems, it is possible to benefit from the experiences and knowledge of pioneering entrepreneurial sectors to develop the appropriate entrepreneurial ecosystem model in the context of the country’s agricultural higher education system. This study aims at explaining the entrepreneurial ecosystem model in the context of the agricultural higher education system in Iran, and is considered field research in terms of data collection, non-experimental in terms of controlling the variables, applied research in terms of purpose, and exploratory sequential mixed method research (qualitative-quantitative) in terms of methodology. In the qualitative section using purposeful sampling, the viewpoints of 15 startup experts were analyzed. In the quantitative section, the statistical population consisted of 1800 startup activists in Iran. Using the Cochran formula, a sample including 286 individuals was selected randomly. For data analysis, SPSS22 and AMOS24 software and frequency statistic in the descriptive section, and confirmatory factor analysis in the inferential section were used. According to the findings of the qualitative section, the component of human capital had the highest number of codes, followed by policy, socio-cultural, support, market development and financial-economic components, respectively. According to the findings of the quantitative section, support, human capital, policy, market development, socio-cultural and financial-economic components were respectively found important to entrepreneurial ecosystem growth in the context of the agricultural higher education system of Iran.