An inmate, doing time in Rajaee Shar prison, has taken the university entrance exam for a PhD program according to the local officials.
Iran’s prison regulations do not prevent inmates from studying and contrary to the many universities in the world, Iranian educational system accepts students with criminal records.
‘Currently, about 214 undergraduate and 14 graduate inmate students are studying at different universities in the country,’ says Mostafa Mohebi, the director general of Tehran Province Prisons.
According to the studies, education provides opportunities for people with criminal records to move beyond their experience with the penal system and reach their full potential. The more education a person has, the higher their income. Similarly, the more education a person has, the less likely they are to return to prison.
“One of our inmates who had previously gained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees while he has been spending his eight-year conviction in Rajaee Shar prison, has attended the PhD entrenace exam last weekend,” Mohebi added.
A 2013 analysis of several studies found that obtaining higher education reduced recidivism – the rate of returning to prison – by almost 43 percent in developed countries.