Malek Hosseini's essay “The Tale of the Elephants Our University Inflates!”

Until this very September of the Corona year, the situation for our doctoral students was such that they had to secure the acceptance of a scientific-research article (henceforth: SRA) – and only an SRA approved by the Ministry of Science, not one from their own university! – in order to defend their dissertation, and then secure the acceptance of a second article to receive their blessed degree – this second one could be an SRA from their own university. The supervisor's name also absolutely had to appear alongside the student's name as an author (as the corresponding author, no less!); the advisor's name also had to appear, but with a degree of leniency in the offense, they could write a letter of withdrawal so as not to cause problems for the student. At least some professors had issues with this whole affair, especially the requirement that their names be included. I was among this group and spoke out about it many times. Once, I sensed that even the then-dean of the faculty, who (like the current dean) was, as they say, one of us, had come to believe the words of the higher-ups that this is how it is everywhere in the world, and I was compelled to say that when I was pursuing my doctorate at one of the most prestigious universities in Europe, I did not hear the term ISI article even once, let alone have my defense or graduation be conditional upon the acceptance or publication of such a thing.

In short, our comments and grumblings and the reasoned letter we wrote bore fruit, and suddenly a change occurred: an order came that from this fifteenth of Aban, for the pre-defense and its consequent defense, the acceptance of one article is no longer required; it is sufficient for the student to present 5 article points, with the explanation that these paltry five points are the result of one published SRA and the letter of acceptance for a second SRA, plus the acceptance of a third article, which need not be an SRA but must meet such and such criteria! It is clear that for the issuers of this new regulation, just like the previous one, there is no religious or legal problem with this; indeed, what importance does it have that the student was unaware of such conditions at the time of enrollment? In any case, in the contract between the university and the student, the right is always with the university.

Again, in short, we were still in the shock of the wit and prudence of our university's regulation-writers and circular-drafters, and of course reassured that at least for a year no new elephant would be inflated, unaware that not even a semester had passed before, if not a giant elephant, at least a baby elephant was being inflated! This time the order came that henceforth, the student must, along with their supervisor, conduct the pre-defense of their dissertation at the central organization in the presence of a seven-member committee, so that the quality of the dissertation is guaranteed and they may graciously issue permission for the defense! (Now, as I reread this tale before publication, it seems to me that this baby elephant is in no way inferior to the elephant!)

Do not think the story is over and our senior managers are neglecting more important matters! They are also mindful of the academic advancement of professors, and these very days have decreed that each faculty member must present "at least two webinars" per year; after all, a semester of fifteen required teaching credits and the necessity of two articles for an annual promotion of fifty or sixty thousand tomans is no big deal! And besides, is giving a speech such a difficult task?

Well, we are left wondering what to do, to whom to write a sealed letter, and with whom to speak, lest the honey-vinegar concoction only increase the bile! We cannot just sit idly by, and the result is this storytelling, which need not become more detailed or include specifics, and anyway, are there any unspoken words left about, for example, the corruptions of requiring article acceptance and publication for a doctoral dissertation defense? Does it need to be said that the responsible and accountable body for the academic portion of every course of study and university dissertation is the relevant specialized department and faculty, not the central or non-central organization, and if a department or faculty lacks the competence for such responsibility, that department and faculty should be shut down or restricted, and, for instance, be stripped of the permission to admit doctoral students? Does it need to be said that there is no room for extra micro-managing when faculty members, with a mandatory workload one and a half times that of their colleagues at public universities, have, in protest of their shameful salaries and despairing of university administrators, resorted to staging a sit-in before the parliament (and this under Corona conditions and at the peak of air pollution)? Does it need to be said...?

    Let me conclude. A few years ago, during the tenure of the former university president, and in response to the false statements that had been made and the clear injustice that had befallen a number of colleagues, I published a piece (read it here) with this warning at its end: “Let the guilty fear the sighs of the oppressed!”; I believe it was not long before that sigh took effect.  Now, too, there are many sighs, loud and soft!

Malek Hosseini

Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran! (What’s more, you have no idea how some research managers at this very university – using their personal authority! – insist over and over that students not suffice with mentioning these details and also include the name of the faculty in the article extracted from their thesis! After all, why should the benefit of a rising “ranking” only go to the university and leave the faculty deprived? It is the ranking that matters; otherwise, what need would the faculty have, for instance, for a small reading room so students have a place to study in their free time? Yes, just a reading room; there is no doubt, of course, about the library being superfluous for the faculty!)

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