This article examines the phenomenon of young Iranian women who are encouraged to pursue higher education but who are deterred from entering the labor market. It identifies the factors that college women themselves recognize as motivating or inhibiting their participation in these two public realms. The research reported suggests that the impediment to women in Iranian society not entering the work force is not Islam per se, but broader sociocultural elements. These findings reflect one of the most significant challenges faced by countries with significant Muslim populations: the transformation of gender roles through higher education.