Despite coronavirus restrictions, the Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution (SCCR) in its 839th meeting on April 13, 2021 in the presence of President Hassan Rouhani announced its determination to organize the 1401 (2022) university entrance exam.
Announcing the above, SCCR Secretary Dr. Saeed Ameli said the national university entrance exam (Konkur) accounts for 11 percent of admissions to national universities across the country, while Islamic Azad University admits only two percent of its students through the national exam. “This means 89 percent of admissions are based on educational background and without any competition in national exams.”
He, however, noted that pressure and stress for the national exams on highly demanded disciplines have overshadowed the entire higher education system, creating a giant business with an annual turnover of 20000 billion tomans. “This business has created a sort of social discrimination in admissions for popular disciplines.”
Underscoring strong and weak points of the current system of national exams, Dr. Ameli announced SCCR’s intention to design best method for student admission based on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analysis. “To that end, some policies have been adopted, according to which the current system of admission will continue while student performance in high school will enjoy maximum scores in final evaluation. A major component of the new policies will be the 60% share of high school performance and 40% share of ability to pass university entrance exam for any admission to national universities.”
He added: “The policy for reorganization of student evaluation and voluntary admission to universities has been prepared based on the successful experiences of the world countries. It has an inclusive approach to high school and university students. Therefore, diversity of evaluation and decentralization of admissions are two important components of the plan.”
Dr. Ameli further stated that the council cannot ignore 12-year human and social investment by the educational sector and “serve as a bridge for student admission to the university” simply with a four-hour exam by an organization “completely detached from education”.
He also lamented “almost zero level role of the university” as an institution with no will in admission or rejection of students who enter based on entrance exam scores.
“SCCR president and Judiciary chief, and also 10 members of the council have called for a change in student admission system,” SCCR Secretary stressed, adding that “a change in student evaluation system, attaching significance to high school performance, independent assessment of capacities of the educational sector for student evaluation, and finally making use of the successful experiences in the world are to be taken into consideration in the new plan.” The council is slated to review the plan in details in its 840th session.
Turning to entrance exams for medical disciplines, Dr. Ameli said: “It was proposed that highly demanded disciplines with major competitions, admit 30 percent of their capacities from amongst the candidates with BSc degrees.”
According to SCCR Secretary, the council in its 839th session appointed Hoj. Dr. Ahmad Vaezi as representative of SCCR in the Board of Trustees of the National Organization for Education of Children, Dr. Mansur Kabkanian and Hoj. Mohammad Mohammadian as representatives of the council in Strategic Council of Science, Technology, and Defense and Security Innovation.
