Even though the Shahid Beheshti University of Iran was officially inaugurated in 1959, the idea of establishing a university that could impart authentic academic courses dates back to much earlier when the absence of such a structure in the higher education system of the country could be felt. Eventually, after Ali Sheikholeslam, a law graduate of New York University, was commissioned to establish such a university, the dream of the establishment of a comprehensive university became a reality.

Today’s Shahid Beheshti University was originally established as the “National University” in order to prevent the migration of Iranian students to pursue their higher education in other countries by providing the most up-to-date educational systems at various university levels.

Changes in the Name and Structure of the University

At the time of the establishment of this university, the word “national” was used for institutions that depended on the tuition fees paid by the students to function and did not use government funds. Therefore, in the first years of the university’s activities, only students from the affluent classes of society were able to get admission. However, in 1974, education at this university became free and as a result, all sections of society were eligible to get admitted to it. In 1979, a few months after the victory of the Islamic Revolution, the National University was officially declared a public university, and in 1983 it was renamed after “Martyr Beheshti”, an Iranian scholar, orator, and politician who was martyred in a terrorist attack after the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

The last important change that occurred in the structure of the Shahid Beheshti University was that its medical and paramedical faculties were detached from it and transformed into an independent university named “Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences”.

Faculties and Scientific Centers

The first batch of students of the “National University” were given admission in the fields of banking, financial and economic sciences, and architecture. Thereafter and by 1966, the faculties of Medicine, Foreign Language, Science, Dentistry, and Law were formed making it a comprehensive university. Presently, the number of faculties at Shahid Beheshti University stands at 19 (in four categories of engineering, humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences).

In addition, the following 20 specialized research institutes and centers are also affiliated with this university:

1. Laser and Plasma Research Institute

2. Medicinal Plants and Drugs Research Institute

3. Environmental Sciences Research Institute

4. Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences

5. Electrical Networks Research Institute

6. Cyberspace Research Institute

7. Institute of Medical Science and Technology

8. Family Research Institute

9. Institute for Science and Technology Studies

10. Interdisciplinary Quranic Studies Research Institute

11. Center for GIS Studies

12. Center for Regional/Spatial Researches

13. Gemology Center

14. Center for Oil and Gas Exploration

15. UNESCO Chair for Human Rights, Peace and Democracy

16. Protein Research Center

17. Iranian Research Center for Silk Road

18. Waqf Research Center

19. Center for Economic and Political Studies

20. Unconventional Water Resources Center

Presently, the number of faculty members of this university stands at 900 and with about 20 thousand students the Shahid Beheshti is one of the largest universities in Iran.

Campuses of the Shahid Beheshti University

Apart from the central campus, Shahid Beheshti University admits students in three other campuses:

Zirab Campus: The process of building this campus in the scientific research park of Shahid Beheshti University in the forest lands of the Zirab city of Mazandaran province started in 2000 and ended in 2002. With an area of nearly 9 thousand square meters, this campus teaches and imparts training to its students in such fields as rural development, pulp and paper industries, cellulose industries, and lignocellulosic composites.

Abbaspour School of Engineering: The history of this school dates back to 1970 when it began its activities in the northeast of Tehran province as a specialized electrical training center. However, after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, various technical fields were added to it at associate and bachelor levels. Presently, this campus operates as the best center in Iran in providing applied scientific training in water and electricity, energy, and petrochemical industries.

The School of Medicine of Shahid Beheshti University Medical Sciences is one of the oldest among modern schools of medicine in Iran.

History of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences

After the establishment of the National University of Iran in the early 1960s, two faculties of “Banking and Finance and Economic Sciences” and “Architecture” were established and later in 1962, the Faculty of Medicine was also founded in this university, making the National University of Iran one of the main centers of medical training in the country. This faculty started its activities with 150 students in a seven-story building in one of the central areas of Tehran. Three years later, after the construction of new buildings that are now known as the main campus of Shahid Beheshti University, the Faculty of Medicine was moved there.

In the beginning, the National University of Iran charged tuition fees to its students, thus, only students from well-to-do families could get admitted to it. However, in the years that followed, it was declared as a public university, as a result of which tuition fees were removed so that students from all sections of society could study in it.

The National University of Iran was renamed “Shahid Beheshti University” in 1983. Two years later, after a law was passed on the Separation of Universities of Medical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences was officially founded as an independent university, and several other medical educational centers were merged into it.

Educational and Research Activities of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences

Presently, 13 thousand students pursue their higher education under the supervision of more than 1000 full-time faculty members in the following schools of this university:

School of Medicine

School of Dentistry

School of Pharmacy

School of Rehabilitation

School of Nursing & Midwifery

School of Traditional Medicine

School of Allied Medical Sciences

School of Public Health and Safety

School of Advanced Technology in Medicine

In addition, this university has also set up a virtual faculty named "School of Virtual Medical Education and Management”. “Varamin Institute of Health Education” is also affiliated with this university and 21 medical centers in the form of education and treatment or just treatment as well as 10 health networks in different cities of Tehran province, also work under the supervision of this university. Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences also has the following research institutes:

Research Institute for Dental Sciences

Research Institute for Endocrine Science

Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases

National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute

National Research Institute for Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases

International Status and Activities of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences

Being equipped with appropriate facilities and educational processes, this university is considered one of the best universities in Iran, which has also been approved by various global ranking systems. For instance, in the 2023 report of the Shanghai Ranking System, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences was ranked 201 to 300 making it one of the top four universities in Iran in the field of food science and technology. This university has also been ranked 401 to 500 in the fields of biotechnology and clinical medicine. In public health, the rank of this university was 301 to 400 and in nursing, it was 201 to 300.

Similarly, in the ranking system of Times Institute published in 2023, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences was ranked 19th among Iranian universities and 8th among Iranian universities of medical sciences with an overall ranking of 601 to 800. According to the ISC ranking in 2021, this university is recognized as the second-best university in Iran, after Tehran University of Medical Sciences, with a rank of 301 to 350 in medical and health sciences. In the area of agricultural sciences, too, this university was ranked 351 to 400.

Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences has close relations with some foreign educational and research institutions. The office of scientific, medical, and academic cooperation of Iran and France, along with the tables of scientific, medical, and academic cooperation with some other countries such as Austria (Vienna Medical School), Italy (Turin and Florence), and Portugal (Porto), are among the centers that have been founded to expand scientific and research collaboration and conduct joint research projects.