The Role of University Courses in Promoting Sustainable Development Awareness in Saudi Universities

This study aimed to examine how students viewed the degree to which general university courses would help in creating awareness over the concept of sustainability at Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University. A quantitative design was used to determine the impact that such courses have on the goals of sustainable development (SDGs) as seen by students studying in the College of Education, at the same institution. In order to verify the reliability and validity of the data collected Cronbach alpha coefficient was used to test internal consistency of the questionnaire responses. In addition, the correlation analysis and multiple regression were also used in order to explore the associations and strength relationships between the study variables and associated dimensions following the approach used by Pearson. In 2024, a survey was conducted to collect data by sending it to 114 students (both male and female) in the College of Education. In the analysis, it was identified that the role of university education in inculcating sustainability awareness among students and their understanding of the material taught in the relevant courses have a statistically significant and strong relation. Also, the results revealed a moderate correlation between the threats faced by sustainability in higher education and the strategies proposed to mitigate them, indicating that barriers exist in relation to the implementation of recommended interventions. On the basis of these observations, the paper highlights the necessity of redesigning university curricula, especially general courses, to incorporate better the concept of sustainability.