Approximately two hundred international students participated in the second Persian language proficiency test on Friday at examination centers both in Iran and abroad, indicating a growing interest in learning the language.
According to the IRNA agency, the Student Affairs Organization organized the event. The testing took place in four locations: Ferdowsi University in Mashhad, Razavi University in Kermanshah, Allameh Tabataba'i University in Tehran, and the International Campus of Tehran University in Baghdad, Iraq.
Saeid Khabib, head of the Student Affairs Organization, quoted by IRNA, noted that international students wishing to study at Iranian universities must complete 480 hours of Persian language training under the guidance of professional and experienced instructors as part of preparation for this test. He also added that over fifty Persian language teaching centers operate in Iranian universities.
According to Khabib, the goal of this process is to ensure that international students have mastered the basic skills necessary for studying at Iranian higher education institutions and can use academic materials more effectively in their respective fields of specialization.
The first test was held on February 12 in Tehran. Previously, on January 24, Abbas Kanbari-Baghestan, an employee of the Student Affairs Organization, stated that achieving a certain score in Persian language knowledge will become a key requirement for admitting international students to Iranian universities starting from the next academic year, which begins in the autumn of 2026. He specified that the test includes listening, speaking, and writing sections.
Emphasizing the importance of providing quality education to international students, the official noted that Persian language teaching centers play a vital role in attracting foreign students and preparing them for university studies. Therefore, they must make every effort to hire experienced professors to offer the best educational courses that help international students learn Persian.
Currently, nearly 60,000 international students are studying at Iranian universities, exceeding the figure of 35,000 students in the previous Iranian academic year, which began on September 22, 2024. Despite existing difficulties, Saeid Khabib, head of the Student Affairs Organization, reported in October 2025 that Iran has attracted students from 101 countries. He also stressed that the scientific potential of the country's universities and their positive history of international cooperation represent a valuable opportunity that must be utilized to integrate the presence of international students into national discourse and strategic planning, adding that students mainly come from Afghanistan, India, Iraq, and Pakistan.
According to the Seventh National Development Plan (2023–2028), the number of international students is projected to increase to 320,000 from the current approximately 60,000. To achieve this goal, the higher education system must implement a number of institutional and developmental approaches in organizations related to international students, according to the Mehr news agency.
In this regard, the parliamentary research center analyzed Iran's situation in attracting international students and the measures that should be taken into consideration. According to the report, the number of international students in the country has increased from 13,767 in the Iranian year 1394 (2015–2016) to 68,563 in 1403 (2024–2025). Over the last decade, the number of educational institutions authorized to admit international students has significantly increased from 45 to 206.
The report also indicates that parliament officially adopted 13 provisions, such as providing short-term leave, issuing visas, creating a graduate center for international students, and conducting remedial courses, as part of the educational charter for international students; however, these provisions have not been implemented in a timely manner. Furthermore, major national organizations and institutions do not participate in planning cultural programs for international students. Other identified problems include a lack of strategic integrated marketing skills, as well as bureaucratic and lengthy correspondence.
The parliamentary research center proposed several suggestions to facilitate the attraction of more international students. The most important is adopting a revenue-oriented approach, soft cultural power, and expanding science. Another suggestion emphasizes the importance of strengthening South-South international cooperation, i.e., developing political and economic interactions with densely populated countries such as Pakistan, India, Egypt, and some Central Asian countries. Other proposed solutions include continuous evaluation of other countries' policies in attracting students, developing software and hardware, a stable and secure network, and increasing the number of scholarships.
