Challenges of the Private Sector of Higher Education in Iran

Objective: The increasing social demand for university admission and the inability to provide funding for higher education growth have encouraged many governments to get private sector participation in the area. In Iran, private higher education came to surface in 1958, and the activity of this sector has continued with a large fluctuation. In the course of action, the centers face various challenges that have made it difficult for them to operate. This article examines the most critical challenges facing the private sector in higher education in Iran.
Materials and Methods: The statistical population of this study consists of 75 experts and includes a variety of executives and higher education experts. In order to collect data, questionnaires were employed. Content validity was used to determine the validity of the questionnaire, and the Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to assess its reliability. To analyze the data, first through some central features and dispersion, descriptive findings were explained, and then a one-sample T-test was used to compare the mean with the expected level.
Discussion and conclusion: Some of the challenges in the private sector of higher education stem from the decisions and actions of the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology such as increasing student admission in Payame Noor, Azad, and vocational universities, expanding state-run university branches, issuing unauthorized licenses for the establishment of new NGOs, unclear policies, numerous decision-makers in the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, not engaging the private sector in policy-making decisions, planning and regulation, and generalizing some shortcomings of institutions to the entire private sector of higher education. The existing administrative and organizational structure also poses challenges such as restrictions on NGOs using official platforms, lack of coordination from one  government administration to the next, lack of a centralized NGO to organize, oversee and evaluate private institutions, lack of cooperation among government organizations, the existence of semi non-governmental institutions in the list of NGOs, and the existence of various institutions in the same name and title as non-governmental higher education institutions.
The legal challenges include lack of specific private sector regulations, lack of a proper ranking system, lack of uniform development criteria, not imposing the law on poor quality institutions, and the objection of some to the privatization of higher education due to violation of Article 30 of the Constitution. Existing social and cultural conditions also lead to challenges such as declining enrollment due to decline in population growth, the poor reputation of private higher education institutions in society, perceptions of the low quality of education among graduates, lack of willingness among organizations to recruit graduates from private universities, lack of job opportunities for graduates of private universities, a misconception of the non-governmental institutions, a restriction on the low-income class in having access to private higher education centers, and the mass media inaccurate information on non-governmental organizations.
The financial challenges include the inability of the private sector to invest in higher education, inadequate government funding in NGOs, and people's reluctancy to donate to such establishments. The educational challenges include failure to meet the standard faculty to student ratios and the recruitment of qualified professors at prestigious state-run universities, as well as the obstacles to the development of such institutions.