Brain drain is a challenge facing Iranian society. Bahram Salavati, researcher and former director of the Iranian Migration Observatory, told the state-run Entekhab news outlet on June 9: “Every 10 years—starting from 2006, the year that administration came in which they called the ‘miracle of the millennium’—we have seen the number of Iranian students abroad double. If we start at 15,000 that year, it reached 30,000 after the first decade. Then in the late 2000s and early 2010s, it rose from 30,000 to 60,000. But just in the past four or five years, that 60,000 has jumped to 120,000 students. Meaning we did what used to take 10 years in just four.”
Terrifying Brain Drain Statistics: Iran Deprived of Its Human Capital
Salavati continued: “If we continue at this pace, we’ll realize what’s happening. For the first time in this country’s history, we have more than 100,000 students abroad—just in numbers. … The return rate is 1%—that’s extremely dangerous. Migration has become one-way. The concept of brain circulation doesn’t apply to Iran at all. And this is the picture we’re facing in 2025, while the major shocks are still ahead of us.”
Growing Wave of Professor Migration Poses Serious Challenge To Iran’s Scientific Future
According to credible reports, between 2007 and 2021, around 150,000 to 180,000 scientific professionals left Iran—resulting in an annual loss of $50 to $70 billion. Worst of all, only 1% of these elites consider returning, while the global average return rate for skilled migrants is 7%. This means Iran is not only losing its elite to brain drain but is effectively gifting them permanently to other countries.
OECD Data on Iranian Brain Drain
According to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), over 20% of Iranians living abroad hold higher education degrees. From 1979 to 2018, the number of Iranian emigrants grew from 500,000 to 3.1 million, increasing from 1.3% to 3.8% of the country’s population. The primary destinations for these emigrants are the United States, Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom. In the United States alone, 96% of patents registered by Iranian inventors between 2007 and 2012 belonged to Iranians residing abroad. Furthermore, 110,000 Iranian researchers and scholars work at universities and research institutions outside the country—equivalent to one-third of Iran’s total research workforce.
Crisis in Key Sectors: From Doctors to Engineers
Brain drain is not limited to students. The healthcare sector is in even more critical condition. Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, secretary-general of Iran’s Medical Community, warned that 80% of medical students are considering emigration. In 2022, 6,500 doctors and medical specialists left the country. Additionally, 3,000 nurses emigrate from Iran each year, despite the government spending around $68,000 to train each one.
The situation in the information technology sector is no better. Over 50% of employees in Iran’s tech startups intend to migrate, and most have no plans to return. From pilots and truck drivers to construction workers, people from all walks of life are fleeing. Even 83 out of the 86 recent Olympiad medalists have emigrated.
Cronyism and Corruption: The Silent Killers of Talent
Why has brain drain become a norm? The answer is simple: corruption, cronyism, and the regime’s incompetence.
Each Year, 1,500 Nurses Leave Their Jobs, 500 Emigrate from Iran
Runaway inflation has devalued the national currency by 45% in a single year, reducing professionals’ wages to a joke. An engineer in Iran earns the equivalent of $600 per month, whereas abroad they can earn significantly more.
Brain drain is a national crisis that has robbed Iran of its future. Thirty percent of the population dreams of emigrating, and 62% of those who leave have no intention of returning. This is not merely an economic problem—it is a cultural and social catastrophe.
