25% of University Professors Have Migrated from Iran in Recent Years

The Iranian Minister of Science states that in recent years, "25%" of university professors have migrated from the country, with some having no intention of returning. Concurrently, the President has said that education in universities should be structured so that "even if you hit a student, they would not be willing to leave their country." Hossein Simaei Sarraf, the Minister of Science, described the 25% migration rate as "worrisome" and noted that various factors including "occupational, economic, social, and political" contribute to this statistic. However, he emphasized the economic factor as one of the main reasons for professors' migration, stating, "Salaries for professors in our neighboring country across the water range from four to seven thousand dollars, while the salary of a full professor with 50 ranks barely reaches a thousand dollars." Simaei Sarraf acknowledged the plight of young professors who wish to start families but find it difficult to sustain a living in the country due to low wages, leading them to consider migration. The Minister also warned that this level of migration not only leads to a "decline" in the quality of universities and students but that if this trend continues, individuals who replace them may be of a weaker caliber. This senior government official briefly mentioned the role of political pressures on professors' migration, but in recent years, a significant number of university professors in Iran who were not aligned with the Islamic Republic's policies have been suspended, dismissed, or pressured. The newspaper Etemad published a list in September 2023 of 52 professors dismissed from Iranian universities, indicating that another wave of dismissals began at the start of Ebrahim Raisi's administration in 2021 and intensified during the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests. On Friday, December 2, Masoud Pezeshkian, the President, also spoke at a gathering of "student Basij officials and Basij clerics" about the over 80% desire among youth in Iran to migrate. Pezeshkian, without mentioning the reasons for this increasing desire, added, "Education in universities and schools must be delivered in such a way that even if you hit a student, they would not be willing to leave their country." The statements from the Minister of Science and the President came just days after remarks from Ali Rabiei, the President's social assistant, who stated that the age of desire to migrate in Iran has dropped to "under 18 years." Rabiei also explicitly stated that today migration is considered a "way of escape" for Iranians. Economic, political, and social pressures in recent years have led a significantly larger number of citizens from various social classes to consider migration, with many preferring to live and work in neighboring countries.