Over 65% of Female Graduates Are Unemployed

According to Mehr News Agency, 51.02% of university graduates in Iran are "inactive," with the unemployment rate for female graduates in the country at 65.5%. The highest unemployment rate is among graduates in environmental studies at 49.01%. This report, published on Friday (January 1), extracts its statistics from 5.8 million university graduates in the country. Of this number, 51.02% are "inactive" and have "no role" in the country's job market, while 4.5 million, equivalent to 39.9%, are employed and 1.03 million, or 9.1%, are unemployed. According to the latest statistics from the Ministry of Labor, the environmental studies field has the highest unemployment rate at 49.1%, followed by computer science at 39.9% and industrial processing at 32%. In addition to these three fields, high unemployment rates are also found in behavioral and social sciences at 19.7%, business and administrative affairs at 19.5%, law at 21.8%, biological sciences at 22%, natural sciences at 22.4%, architecture and construction at 25.9%, and agriculture, forestry, and fisheries at 22%. The lowest unemployment rate is reported in health at 7.9%. Besides health, graduates in fields such as teacher training at 8%, journalism at 8.8%, security services at 8.4%, and transportation services at 10.8% have a better chance of finding jobs. Of the total graduates in the country, 53.4% are male and 46.6% are female. Among men, 61.6% are active (87% employed and 13% unemployed), while 38.4% are inactive. Among women, 34.5% are active (70.1% employed and 29.9% unemployed), and 65.5% are completely economically inactive. This report also notes the unequal chances of employment between women and men, stating that "there is a deep gap between the employment opportunities available for women and men, and in many cases, the unemployment rate for women is several times higher than the general unemployment rate in the country and the unemployment rate for men." Mehr News Agency reports the overall unemployment rate for female and male graduates at 18.5%, with the unemployment rate for male graduates at 13% and for female graduates at 65.5%. According to this report, the number of educated women seeking jobs currently exceeds the number of educated men seeking jobs. The reporter expressed surprise that out of 5 million and 305 thousand female university graduates, only 1 million and 282 thousand are employed and 546 thousand are seeking jobs. This report adds that these statistics indicate that 3 million and 476 thousand women in Iran have gone to university and studied to "become housebound and have no activity in the country's economic flow." Shahindokht Molaverdi, the Iranian Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, recently announced that over 40% of women with university degrees are unemployed and that the country has been "unsuccessful in converting educated women into human resources." In another part of its report, Mehr News Agency wrote that out of 6 million and 86 thousand male university graduates, 3 million and 262 thousand are employed and only 487 thousand are seeking jobs. In other words, 2 million and 336 thousand educated men are "housebound and completely inactive." The report does not mention the reasons or possible causes for the inactivity of female and male graduates. Based on this data, Mehr News Agency concludes that "half of all university education in the country has been aimless and ineffective; for every two students, one will become housebound and inactive and will envision no future for themselves."