University of Tehran


The University of Tehran or Tehran University is a public collegiate university in Iran, and the oldest and most prominent Iranian university located in Tehran. Based on its historical, socio-cultural, and political pedigree, as well as its research and teaching profile, UT has been nicknamed "Mother University". It is also the premier knowledge producing institute among all OIC countries. The university offers more than 111 bachelor's degree programs, 177 master's degree programs, and 156 PhD. programs. Many of the departments were absorbed into the University of Tehran from the Dar al-Funun established in 1851 and the Tehran School of Political Sciences established in 1899.
The main campus of the university is located in the central part of the city. However, other campuses are spread across the city as well as in the suburbs, such as the Baghe Negarestan Campus in the central eastern part of the city, the Northern Amirabad Campuses in the central western part of the city, and the Abureyhan Campus in the suburb of the capital. The main gate of the university, with its specific design and modern architecture, is the logo of the university.
Admission to the university's undergraduate and graduate programs is limited to the top one percent of students who pass the national entrance examination administered yearly by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology.

History

The first official step for the establishment of the present form of University of Tehran in Iran occurred on 31 March 1931 when Minister of Court Abdolhossein Teymourtash wrote Isa Sedigh who was completing his doctoral dissertation at Columbia University in New York to inquire as to requirements for the establishment of a university in Tehran. Isa Sedigh regarded the letter as an invitation to outline a comprehensive scheme for the establishment of a new university.
In 1933, during the cabinet meeting, the subject was brought up. Ali Asghar Hekmat, the acting minister of the Ministry of Education stated the following words there:
"Of course, there is no doubt on the thriving state and the glory of the capital, but the only obvious deficiency is that this city has no 'university'. It is a pity that this city lags far behind other great countries of the world."
His words had a profound impact on everyone in the meeting, resulting in the acceptance of the proposal. Thus, allocating an initial budget of 250,000 Tomans, the Ministry of Education was authorized to find a suitable land for the establishment of the university and take necessary measures to construct the building as soon as possible.
Ali Asghar Hekmat, in collaboration and consultation with André Godard, a French architect – who was serving the Ministry of Education as an engineer, began looking for a location for the university grounds. By the orders of Rezā Shāh, the compound of Jalaliyeh garden was selected. Jalaliyeh garden was located in the north of the then Tehran between Amirabad village and the northern trench of Tehran. This garden was founded in the early 1900s during the final years of Nasir ad- Din Shah, by the order of Prince Jalal ad-dawlah.
The master plan of the campus buildings was drawn up by French architects Roland Dubrulle and Maxime Siroux, Swiss architect Alexandre Moser, as well as Andre Godard, Nicolai Markov and Mohsen Foroughi.
The University of Tehran officially inaugurated in 1934. The Amir-abad campus was added in 1945 after American troops left the property as World War II was coming to an end.
The university admitted women as students for the first time in 1937.
In 1935, the formerly males-only university opened its doors to women as part of the country's sweeping universal education policy.
UT played a central role in the overthrow of the Pahlavi government in the 1978-9 revolution. University curricula, staff, and student intake were subject to major revisions in the early 1980s, as part of Iran's Cultural Revolution. UT continues to constitute a central part of Iran's student movement.
In 1986, the Iranian parliament, known as the Majlis of Iran, stipulated that the university's overcrowded College of Medicine be separated into the independent Tehran University of Medical Sciences, and that TUMS be placed under the leadership of the new ministry of health and Medical Education.

Campuses, colleges and faculties

1. Regional Campuses:
2. Colleges:
  • College of Engineering
  • *Schools & Faculties:
  • **School of Electrical & Computer Engineering
  • **School of Mechanical Engineering
  • **School of Chemical Engineering
  • **School of Metallurgy & Materials Engineering
  • **School of Civil Engineering
  • **School of Mining Engineering
  • **School of Surveying and Geomatics Engineering
  • **School of Industrial Engineering
  • **School of Engineering Science
  • **Fouman Faculty of Engineering in Fouman
  • **Caspian Faculty of Engineering in Rezvanshahr
  • College of Science
  • *Schools:
  • **School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science
  • **School of Geology
  • **School of Biology
  • **School of Chemistry
  • **School of Physics
  • **School of Biotechnology
  • College of Fine Arts
  • College of Agriculture & Natural Resources in Karaj and Pakdasht
  • College of Farabi in Qom
3. Faculties
  • Faculty of New Sciences and Technologies
  • Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
  • Faculty of Governance
Humanities Faculties:
  • Faculty of World Studies
  • Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literature
  • Faculty of Literature and Human Sciences
  • Faculty of Law and Political Science
  • Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies
  • Faculty of Thought and Islamic Sciences
Social and Behavioral Sciences Faculties:
  • Faculty of Economics
  • Faculty of Physical Education and Sport Sciences
  • Faculty of Geography
  • Faculty of Psychology and Education
  • Faculty of Social Sciences
  • Faculty of Entrepreneurship
  • Faculty of Management

    Academic institutes and centers

University of Tehran also co-ordinates several major institutes:
The University of Tehran hosts cultural and academic activities on the national and international levels. Furthermore, UT hosts delegations and professors from abroad.
University of Tehran is appointed as the Center of Excellence by Iran's Ministry of Science and Technology in the fields of "Evaluation and improvement of irrigation networks", "Breeding and Biotechnology of trees", "Farming, Grading and Biotechnology", "Applied Electromagnetic Systems", "Land Logistics", "Sustainable Urban Planning and Development", "Architectural Technology", "Biological Control of Pests and Plant Diseases", "Rural Studies and Planning", "High-Performance Materials", "Control and Intelligent Processing", "Sustainable Management of Watershed", "Applied Management of Fast Growing Wood Species", "Surveying and Disaster Management", "Engineering and Infrastructure Management", "Oil and Gas". This appointment is based on national standing based on research achievements and invested funding in the mentioned topics. Fifteen percent of the country's Centers of Excellence, as recognized by the government, are located at the University of Tehran, which along with more than 40 research centers ensure UT's commitment to research. Together, over 3,500 laboratories are active in these centers and in the faculties. In addition, the University of Tehran publishes more than 50 scientific journals, some of which have the ISI index.
The Central Library and Documentation Center of the University of Tehran has been a member of the International Federation of Library Associations and institutions since 1967. The library complements the 35 specialized libraries based at different faculties, all with the aim of advancing the research goals of the university. Currently the Central Library and Documentation Center is offering its services to more than 65 thousand members. It hosts more than 5,000 users daily. The library offers its resources under 13 main collections. The manuscript collection of the University of Tehran includes over 17,000 volumes of manuscripts in Persian, Arabic and Turkish. The library also hosts a state of the art center for the preservation of manuscripts.
The University of Tehran Press, which focuses on publishing academic books, has published over 5,000 books up until today, and currently publishes on average more than one book per day. UTP has over 96 distribution agents throughout the country as well as one in Afghanistan.

Endowment

University of Tehran is a public university and its funding is provided by the government of Iran. For the top ranks of the national university entrance exam, education is free in all public universities. The people with ranks below the normal capacity of the universities will be required to pay part or all of the tuition. In 2011 University of Tehran with an amount equivalent to 70 million dollars got the highest budget among all universities in Iran.