Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch
Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch (, Daneshgah-e Âzad-e Eslâmi-ye Vahed-e Tehran Mirkâzi) is a private research university located in Tehran, Iran. Founded in 1982, Central Tehran is the flagship institution of the universities affiliated with Islamic Azad University system. The university is the oldest, the largest and the top university among all branches of Islamic Azad University academic organization, established in 1982, originally as the Islamic Azad University of Tehran. The university campuses rest on of various districts of Tehran. It offers approximately 488 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in a wide range of disciplines such as sciences, engineering, art, architecture, humanities and social sciences. History Establishment Islamic Azad University Central Tehran Branch is the very first branch established under the university system which is known as Islamic Azad University, so its history can be traced back to the foundation of the university. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani sought to establish a private university to address the challenges posed during early years of Iranian Revolution -such as Cultural Revolution- and to meet increasing demands of secondary-school graduates for higher education in Iran. On the sidelines of an Islamic Republican Party conference, Rafsanjani mooted the idea with Abdollah Jasbi, who supported and