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Educational Iran is the story of a country where the dream to get an education once belonged to only those who were wealthy, well connected or exceptionally talented. Today, however, the dream of a university degree has become ubiquitous in Iranian society. But just because it is commonplace does not mean that the process of getting one is without its challenges. As the number of Iranian students in higher education continues to climb, new bottlenecks are forming at the top of the food chain. Those seeking PhDs in science and the humanities are struggling to gain admission, with only 6 percent of those who applied to make it through the application process.
After the revolution, Iran began to rebuild its higher education system and increase access to it. The country now has 54 universities and institutes of higher learning, including a comprehensive Applied Sciences University. Nevertheless, the country remains a long way from achieving its goal of making higher education universal.
The vast majority of students are still required to pay for their education, and this is especially true of those in university programs. The high cost of education is a major contributor to the declining numbers of young people graduating from secondary school. This trend is most apparent in rural areas where many families are unable to afford the expense of educating their children.
While the government’s educational policies are often lauded, they are often plagued by ideological and political influences. As a result, the national curriculum is not always well-aligned with the needs of the modern economy and the system is susceptible to various religious and cultural influences.
Discrimination against women is endemic in the country’s schools, where it takes the form of segregation and the teaching of biased gender stereotypes. In the end, this discrimination is not only damaging to women, but also to the state, as it robs the nation of the talent that it could otherwise harness through education.
While the educational gap between men and women has narrowed, there is still a significant divide between urban and rural residents when it comes to literacy rates. This gap has become a source of concern for the government and reflects a failure to provide equitable opportunities in the areas of education, health and employment. It also points to the need to invest in more vocational and technical training programs to ensure that the skills acquired by university graduates are useful in the labor market. The Middle East Institute (MEI) is an independent, non-partisan, nonprofit organization that accepts financial donations but retains sole editorial control of its work. This article is part of MEI’s Educational یران آموزشگاه , which aims to examine the impact of the Iranian government’s policies and culture on the quality of education. Visit MEI’s website to learn more about our projects and initiatives.