Professional Bachelor In Sustainable Agriculture

The Professional B.Sc. in Sustainable Agriculture aims to provide the society with qualified young men and women to compete for important sites in agricultural research, national research centers, sustainable policy making, and to be experts in sustainable agriculture and quality evaluators. In addition, the ability to create small projects that are eligible for progress, development and competition. It also aims to provide young men and women with expanded knowledge and comprehensive practical skills in sustainable agriculture, including integrated crop production, soil and plant sciences, natural resources and waste management, organic agriculture, poultry and livestock breeding, agricultural and irrigation technology, hydroponics, medicinal plants and traditional agriculture, ecological design, renewable resources and other related topics. In addition, entrepreneurship, business administration, occupational safety, and scientific research. Objectives of the program is innovative in nature, basic in sustainability, comprehensive in context, and necessary at the national and international level.

This program places students in environments where students are expected to not only immerse themselves in science, but engage in other fields such as management, social sciences, and business,  making students better scientists. The program also focuses on critical reading, thinking, and proficient writing; allowing students to engage in other fields making them better job candidates in Palestine and abroad. The program is taught with a student-centered approach, students are not lectured all the time, but instead are expected to fully participate in the learning process through class exercises, scientific literature reviews, discussion participation, and most important, practical training, field work, business, research and innovation.

• Graduates will be critical thinkers with the ability to reflect upon scientific knowledge and continue to expand upon this knowledge throughout their careers.
• Graduates will be able to employ appropriate experimental design and methodology to solve problems from a professional perspective.
• Graduates will enhance and actively participate in the development of Palestinian economy by applying the acquired latest technologies in sustainable agriculture research and they can start and develop their own business.

The program targets outstanding students seeking positive change through sustainable agriculture and green projects who are graduates of the general secondary school certificate (Tawjihi) in the Scientific or Agricultural stream with an average of no less than 65% or its equivalent from other certificates.

By combining agricultural and sustainability sciences and their applications, scientific research and agribusiness management, the Professional B.Sc. in Sustainable Agriculture aims to prepare and train distinguished graduates qualified for a wide range of career paths. Job opportunities are diverse and unlimited, which include jobs in:

• Ministries and government institutions
• International and local NGOs
• Agricultural companies
• Agricultural consultations
• Food manufacturing
• Manufacture of feed, fertilizers and pesticides
• Agricultural machinery companies
• Associations and agencies dedicated to environmental protection, sustainable development, agriculture or public health
• Academic education in schools and universities
• Scientific research

In addition to managing private businesses and companies that are established with scientific and professional accompaniment during the study period as a requirement for obtaining the B.Sc. degree in Sustainable Agriculture.

A BSc. Professional degree in Sustainable Agriculture is awarded after the successful completion of at least 123 credit hours distributed as follows:

Description	Compulsory	Elective	Total
University courses	18	6	24
Faculty courses	18	—	18
Required Professional B.Sc. courses	69		69
Elective Professional B.Sc. courses		12	12
Total			123

 

1. University courses (24 C.H.)

All students registered to obtain a Professional B.Sc. degree in Sustainable Agriculture must successfully complete the university’s requirements by (24) credit hours distributed as follows:

University Required Courses (18 C.H.)

No.	Course Name	Course Number	Credit hours
1	Arabic language skills	0400101	2
2	English language skills 1	0400184	2
3	English language skills 2	0400185	2
4	Jerusalem throughout history	0400120	2
5	Palestine: nature & environment	0400121	2
6	World civilizations	0400128	3
7	Logical thinking	0400150	3
8	Islamic culture	0400122	2

University elective courses (6 C.H. from languages or cultural studies)

University elective courses (languages)

#	Course name	Course No.	C.H.
1	Hebrew language for beginners	0400111	3
2	Hebrew language (medium level)	0400112	3
3	French language for beginners	0400113	3
4	French language (medium)	0400114	3
5	German language for beginners	0400115	3
6	German language (medium)	0400116	3
7	Spanish language for beginners	0400117	3
8	Spanish language 2	0400184	3
9	Turkish language for beginners	0400185	3
10	Turkish language 2	0400129	3
11	Italian language for beginners	0400146	3
12	Italian language 2	0400147	3
13	Any foreign language approved by the Academic Council later		6

OR

University elective courses (Cultural Studies)

No.	Course Name	Course Number	Credit hours
1	Science and Life	0300142	3
2	Fine Arts	0400130	3
3	Introduction to Music	0400131	3
4	Literary sensing	0400132	3
5	Man and Woman in Human Societies	0400133	3
6	Modern and Contemporary issues in the Arabic Thinking	0400141	3
7	Internet for Special Uses	0303100	3
8	Democracy, Human Rights and International Human Law	0500140	3
9	Peaceful Resolution of Conflicts	0500143	3
10	Communication Skills	0403131	3
11	Introduction to Law	0500145	3
12	Philosophy and History of Science	0409135	3
13	Special Topics	0400148	3
14	Skills for the Workplace	0700301	3

2. Required Faculty courses (18 C.H.)

The student must successfully complete all of the following courses:

Prerequisite	Total	Practical	Theoretical	Course name	Course No.
—	3	1	2	Introduction to physics	0302101
—	4	1	3	Introduction to life sciences	0305101
—	3	0	3	Introduction to Calculus	0306101
—	4	1	3	Introduction to computer science	0303101
—	4	1	3	Introduction to chemistry	0304101
18		Total

3. Required major courses (69 C.H.)

The student within the major must successfully complete all of the following courses:

Prerequisite	Credit Hours			Course No	Course name
	Practical	Theoretical	Total
—–	1	2	3	0345101	Foundations of Sustainable Agriculture
—–	2	2	4	0345102	Soil fertility
—–	2	1	3	0345103	Dryland strategies
—-	1	2	3	0345104	Permaculture and eco-design
—-	1	1	2	0345105	Occupational safety in agriculture
0345101	2	1	3	0345201	Water harvesting and management
0345102	2	2	4	0345202	Plant nutrition
0345101	1	2	3	0345203	Agrifood value chain
0345101	1	2	3	0345204	Agro-biodiversity
0345101	2	1	3	0345205	Sustainable plant production
0345101	1	2	3	0345206	Sustainable animal husbandry 1
0345101	1	2	3	0345207	Plant protection
0345101	1	2	3	0345208	Agricultural technology
0345101	1	2	3	0345209	Hydroponics and aquaponics
0345101	1	2	3	0345301	Agrobiotechnology and Agronanotechnology
0345301	2	1	3	0345302	Agribusiness
0345201	1	1	2	0345303	Irrigation technology
0345101	2	1	3	0345304	Greenhouse management
0345104	3	–	3	0345305	Landscape architecture
0345101	1	2	3	0345306	Agricultural marketing
0345203	2	1	3	0345307	Plant Propagation and tissue culture
0345208	2	1	3	0345308	Research methods in Agriculture
0345101	1	2	3	0345401	Economic plants

 

4. Elective major courses (12 C.H.)

The student must successfully complete at least 12 hours of the following courses:

Prerequisite	Credit hours			Course No.	Course Name
	Practical	Theoretical	Total
0345301	–	2	2	0345402	Ethics in agriculture
0345101	1	2	3	0345403	Palm dates agriculture
0345101	1	2	3	0345404	Apiculture and economic insects
0345101	1	1	2	0345405	Green Technology
0345208	1	1	2	0345406	Farm Machinery
0345101	1	1	2	0345407	Food security
0345101	1	2	3	0345408	Agrichemicals
0345101	2	1	3	0345409	Traditional agrifood
0345206	2	1	3	0345410	Sustainable animal husbandry 2
0345101	1	1	2	0345411	Innovation and entrepreneurship
0345101	–	2	2	0345412	Cooperatives in agriculture
0345101	1	2	3	0345413	Waste management

 

(0345101) Foundations of Sustainable Agriculture                  

The course explores fundamental concepts of sustainable agriculture and food systems through hands-on activities in education farm. It introduces the many faces of food system from basics of soil science, the environment, crop production and food quality. These concepts of sustainable agriculture will be considered through the lens of environmental stewardship, food self-reliance, food justice, health and ethics.

Project: students will have to survey a land and assess its components and other factors, to transform it to a sustainable land.

(0345102) Soil Fertility           

Introduction to soil fertility and productivity- factors affecting. Essential plant nutrient elements- functions, deficiency systems, transformations and availability. Acid, calcareous and salt-affected soil, characteristics and management. Role of microorganisms in organic matter, decomposition, humus formation. Importance of C:N ratio and pH in plant nutrition. The course also covers the integrated plant nutrient management and soil fertility evaluation methods, critical limits of plant nutrient elements and hunger signs. It also describes various organic fertilizers, composting and their types: composition and application methodology.

(0345103) Dryland Strategies

The course offers an overview of dryland strategies and techniques from arid and semi-arid regions around the world, from ancient to modern, with a particular focus on indigenous and traditional methods. It also describes specialized, advanced principles and methodology with a variety of hands-on activities.

The course also covers tree definition, biology, forest communities, taxonomy and classification, native and non-native trees, garden and landscape use of trees, propagation methods, pruning, tree planting and databases.

(0345104) Permaculture and Eco-design                   

The course explores regenerative, ecological design and living. It covers the foundations of permaculture ethics, principles, and design methods. The course experience offers students a formalized structure in learning to design regenerative solutions that address water scarcity, climate change, food production, sustainable infrastructure, renewable energy, social systems and more. It also explores environmental science, ecology, landscaping, farming, gardening, alternative economy, sustainable architecture, community work and sustainable living.

Project: students will have to work on an eco-design project of a farm or garden.

 (0345105) Occupational safety in agriculture

The course explores fundamental aspects of occupational health and safety in agriculture, the agricultural work force, risk populations, general health of farmers and farm workers, physical occupational risk factors, chemical hazards and pesticides, respiratory health among farmers and zoonotic diseases. It offers possible preventive measures, and agricultural related legislations, injury prevention and interventions, safe handling of animals and machinery for farmers’ safety.

(0345201) Water Harvesting and Management

The course provides integrated knowledge and training in water harvesting and management with available technologies, to face the serious threats due to anthropogenic pollution and other climate related events. The course provides technological interventions in the management of water resources, and skills in water harvesting and management.

(0345202) Plant Nutrition                                                         

This course explores plant external growth factors (soil, nutrients and environment), plant macro and micro nutrients and their functions in plant tissues, relationship of major mineral nutrients with plant productivity and symptoms of their deficiency, fertilization of plants with special focus on nutrient use efficiency and selecting low input alternative species. The course will examine the factors that affect the availability of mineral nutrients in soil, their uptake and use by plants. The diagnosis of soil nutrient availability and plant nutrient stress will also be examined. The interaction of mineral nutrients with abiotic stresses and the role of plant mineral nutrition in human health will also be discussed. Laboratory part includes experiments designed to test nutrient deficiency in pots, soil analysis for extractable and available nutrients, measuring acidity and salinity in soil, measuring sodium, potassium, nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic matter in soil, measuring nutrients status (nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium) in plant parts and its relation to nutrients availability in soil, identification of deficiency symptoms of plant nutrient by implementing a series of experiments to study and develop nutrient deficiency symptoms during different plant growth stages, data statistical analysis and interpretation. The course also offers basic knowledge of testing and research instruments such as: optical spectrophotometer, GC and centrifuges.

(0345203)Agrifood Value Chain                          

This course deals with the relationships between humans and plants, the development of plant usages, the structure and functions of different plant parts, plant classification, growth regulators, environmental factors (soil, temperature, water, and light) and its effects on plant production, photosynthesis, respiration and translocation, the effects of pests and weeds, the plant production systems, the course describes Agri-Food Value Chain, its main components, and the linkages between them. It also examines the main trends, drivers, and issues within the chain, covering aspects from agriculture, food production, packaging, to food retailing and catering, with reference to market structure and trade.

Project: students will have to choose a Palestinian crop and apply all activities and set of actors that bring this agricultural product from production in the field to final consumption as a food product.

(0345204) Agrobiodiversity                                                      

This course deals with agrobiodiversity in support of the production of food, fibre and fuel and the conservation of non-commodity species, the importance of biodiversity at the scale of agricultural fields, farms and the wider landscape for securing essential ecosystem services, including those that are essential for agricultural production. The course includes nutrient cycling, pollination and natural pest regulation, companion planting, as well as the role of agrobiodiversity for the sustainability of agricultural production and resilience against stress and disturbances related to global change.

(0345205)Sustainable Plant Production

The course offers deepened understanding of horticulture, gardening and forest gardens, with a focus on various temperate climates. Exploration of the resilience and benefits of forest systems and how they could be tweaked for the creation of forest gardens. The course offers an introduction to the principles and practices in the development, production and use of horticultural crops (fruits, vegetables, nursery, floral). It includes the classification, structure, growth and development, and environmental influences on horticultural plants: horticultural technology: and an introduction to the horticultural industries.

(0345206) Sustainable Animal Husbandry

The course provides a basic understanding of production animals. The course includes the role of animals in society, livestock agricultural systems, and the breeding of sheep, cattle, poultry and small animals. The course also includes natural animal feed knowledge.

(0345207) Plant Protection                                   

Introduction to the basic principles involved in plant diseases. Emphasis on the identification of organisms infecting economical field crops, vegetables and tree fruits, deficiency, diseases and their control, identification, visual observations and microscopic work of different plant diseases. The course focuses on the ecological principles and applied practices of modern biological control of insects, weeds and plant pathogens; including the history, scope, strengths and weaknesses, scientific basis of biological control, the biology of entomophagous insects, insect pathogens, microbial control, biological control methods, companion planting, population ecology as it relates to biological control, biological control in integrated pest management, techniques and protocols in implementation of control programs and bio-control natural mixtures.

(0345208) Agricultural Technology           

The course explores the intellectual and technological understanding and skills in agriculture. The course describes new technologies of sensors, computing, data analysis, remote sensing, robotics, drones and systems of analysis and interpretation, understanding of the type of innovations required to manage future challenges to agricultural and horticultural industries especially those associated with the potential impacts of climate variability and change. The course also describes machinery and new technologies used in agriculture, crop storage equipment and facilities. Examples are GMOs, smart greenhouses, and GPS systems in agriculture. The course explores ethics related to the new technologies used in agriculture.

Project: students will work on innovative and technological ideas that might be transformed to applicable technologies in the field of agriculture.

(0345209) Hydroponics and Aquaponics                                           

The course covers the principals and practices of hydroponic and aquaponic vegetable, herb and fruit production. Specific topics covered include: growing environments (high tunnels, greenhouses, and warehouse/vertical farms), manipulation of and crop response to the aerial and root-zone environments, nutrient solution preparation and management, aquaponics and organic hydroponics, crop maintenance, production scheduling, integrated pest management, and the integration of fish production.  

(0345301) Agro biotechnology and Agro nanotechnology                         

The course describes the flow of information in the biological system of plants from DNA to RNA to protein, the replication, mutation and repair of the genetic material. The course includes plant genotyping, recombinant DNA technology, techniques like DNA/RNA extraction polymerase chain reaction (PCR), bacterial genetic transformation & modification of crops, restriction enzymes cut and ligation. The course also describes the fundamentals of nanotechnology and bio nanotechnology. It explores bioanalytical techniques, nanoparticles, nanostructures and the interaction of nanomaterials with biological systems related to agriculture. It explores all nanotechnologies used in pest-control, biosensors and water remediation.

(0345302) Agribusiness

Introductory course on the basic principles of agricultural economics. Production economics, principles of supply and demand, resource economics, world food situation, marketing of agricultural products, and agricultural public policy. The course covers economics in agriculture, with emphasis on their application to the solution of farm, agribusiness, and agricultural industry problems. The course offers skills in business planning, marketing and financial planning.

Project: students will work on individual business projects and apply all skills in the course to create an agricultural business or start-up.

(0345303) Irrigation Technology

The course covers irrigation principles and methods, evapo-transpiration, irrigation requirements and crops’ water needs. It also describes Plant-Soil-Water relationships, irrigation scheduling, salinity and leaching. Irrigation technology methods: border, check basin, furrow, Sprinkler and drip, with the design of irrigation systems and management.

(0345304) Green house management                                       

The course describes the importance of using greenhouses for production of plants. It covers the establishment and administration of greenhouses, the control of the environment of greenhouses. The course deals with importance of protected agriculture and types greenhouses in term of design, components, installation and maintenance. It also offers agricultural practices and operations inside greenhouses, their impact in increasing production and improving quality of various crops with the use of modern technologies in protected agriculture.

(0345305) Landscape Architecture

The course offers skills of computer design of the physical environment, in rural and urban areas at the local, regional and national level. This includes digital design of gardens, parks and open space systems; site planning and urban design; planning of national parks, forests and nature reserves, planning of roads, the design and management of the landscape as a visual resource and the rehabilitation of disturbed landscapes.

(0345306) Agricultural marketing

This course covers basic concepts and economic principles related to markets for agricultural products from the farm to the consumer’s table. The course applies basic economic principles to analyze current issues in agricultural marketing in Palestine and globally. The course includes an overview of markets for agricultural inputs and products, farm and retail price behavior, and food marketing channels.

(0345307) Plant Propagation and tissue culture

The course covers basic principles and techniques for propagating plants by both sexual and asexual means, including seeds, cuttings, bulbs, and tissue culture. The hormonal and physiological factors affecting rooting, seed dormancy, grafting, budding and layering. It also offers skills in managing and maintaining nurseries.

Project: students will work on the propagation of few selected plants applying various methods.

(0345308) Research Methods in Agriculture                                                         

This course covers qualitative and quantitative research and analysis, with an understanding of the skills needed to design and undertake a research project in agriculture including: planning research projects, experimental design and analytical methods and how to present data. The course covers the techniques used in identifying agricultural problems, forming hypotheses, constructing and using data-gathering instruments, designing research studies, and employing statistical procedures to analyze data. Students will learn skills to read, understand and evaluate published research and write scientifically to finally submit a research.

Project: students will work on a research topic and present findings at the end of the course.

(0345309) Climate Change

The course explores aspects of biological, social, and agricultural sciences underpinning the assessment of food production systems as related to mitigation and adaptation to climate change. The course offers scientific knowledge and integrate information from crop science, livestock science, environmental science, and social science as related to production systems including urban or rural, local or global, and artisanal or industrial food production systems. The course identifies ways in which social structures impact the ability to cope with changing climate.

(0345401) Economic Plants                                                      

The course provides the basic knowledge on medicinal plants and their drugs. The course includes information on the taxonomical, botanical, eco-physiological and biochemical characteristics of the most important species utilized as drugs, addressing the diversity and characteristics of their active ingredients, with hands-on activities. The lab covers the different techniques of medicinal plant taxonomy, some crude drug bioassays and other relevant techniques.

(0345402) Ethics in Agriculture

The course covers social, political, economic and ethical issues that arise in connection with agriculture and food systems. The course provide ethical insights on agriculture, food production and distribution, natural resource use and management, and public policy responses to those issues.

(0345403) Palm Dates Agriculture

This course is designed to study palm dates agriculture as a new promising Palestinian crop. Environmental, irrigation and processing of post-harvest fruits are addressed. The course covers pollination mechanisms as key factor for crop production, as well as palm dates diseases for best control.

(0345404) Apiculture and Economic Insects

The course offers knowledge on economic insects and insects used in plant protection. It is also designed to offer knowledge of the broad field of beekeeping. It includes honey bee biology and behaviour, management for honey production, products of the hive, pests and enemies and the value of bees as pollinators of agricultural crops.    

(0345405) Green Technology

The course explores agriculture’s role as a producer and consumer of energy in the context of the ecosystem, food system and economy. Potential management options to improve agricultural energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and produce energy on farms through solar, wind, hydro, biopower, and biofuel technologies are also explored.

(0345406) Farm Machinery

The course covers the alternatives for providing power for mechanised operations; internal combustion engines, lubrication and cooling systems, mechanical and hydrostatic transmissions, hydraulics and electrical power, and the use of renewable energy sources and animals. The performance of power sources in specific applications and machineries. Range of machinery and equipment available for mechanised operations. Analysis of the performance and criteria for selection of machinery and equipment for specific enterprises, select suitable machinery and equipment for these enterprises.

(0345407) Food Security

This course explores the concepts of food and nutrition, malnutrition, food security and livelihoods. It offers skills to assess the nutrition situation, design and implement programmes, investments and policies that address nutrition problems.This course addresses the linkages between trade and food security, at the national and international levels.

(0345408) Agrichemicals

The course explores the agrochemicals used for intensification of production in global agriculture, to improve produce quality and increase agricultural yields. The course explores the application of agrichemicals, and their risks to the health and safety of persons applying. This course looks at why agrochemicals are a sustainability issue and how we can take control in an agrochemical improvement cycle and pest management.

 

(0345409) Traditional Agrifood

The course offers knowledge and skills in Palestinian traditional agriculture which is defined as a primitive style of farming that involves the intensive use of indigenous knowledge, traditional tools, natural resources, organic fertilizer and cultural beliefs of the farmers. It also explores the traditional ways of traditional post-harvesting and traditional food production. 

(0345410) Sustainable Animal Husbandry 2

The course offers broad and in-depth professional skills for a sustainable career working with livestock and animals reared for produce. It also provides advanced skills in farm or land management, research and marketing.

(0345411) Innovation and Entrepreneurship

The course provides key terms and concepts in agricultural entrepreneurship to farmers, farmer groups and agricultural businesses. The course provides a practical approach to improving the knowledge, skills and attitudes of extension agents as they seek to help the farming community take on new enterprise skills. The course explores types of venture to entrepreneurial goals, the value creation process, designing business models for value, assessing market attractiveness, networking, raising finance, creating competitive advantage, writing business plans, franchising and managing growth.

(0345412) Cooperatives in Agriculture

The course offers basic principles of agricultural cooperatives including types of organizations, legal aspects, governance, membership relations, debt and equity financing, organizational and inter-cooperative problems, and distribution of earnings. The course provides knowledge of the agricultural cooperatives in Palestine, challenges and opportunities.

(0345413) Waste Management

This course provides skills on how to handle waste and to develop more sustainable and cost-effective ways of managing waste in both a local and national context. It explores the principles of the waste management and opportunities in waste management, as a sustainable resource, to protect the environment and maximize profit. The course also explores concepts and skills in recycling to create commercial opportunities, as well as opportunities for energy generation from biological waste, including food waste.