According to a 2004 study conducted by the Iranian Studies Group at MIT, there are more than 500 Iranian-American professors teaching and doing research at top-ranking U.S. universities and colleges. The 2000 U.S. census data also suggests that Iranian-Americans are the most highly educated ethnic group in the United States. However, it is perhaps academia that has been most adversely affected by geopolitics for the past quarter century, at times making students of Iranian origin subject to prejudice and bias. The exchange of academics between the two countries, which was beginning to show promising signs in 2000, has almost come to a standstill since September 11, 2001. Iranian students willing to continue their studies in the U.S. are faced with often insurmountable obstacles in obtaining visas. When they finally manage to arrive in the U.S. they are not allowed to work or receive financial help from their universities.

To help outstanding but financially constrained Iranian or Iranian-American students pursue higher education in the U.S., several Iranian-American philanthropists have set up scholarship funds in recent years. Dozens of Iranian students have benefited from such funds and the figures are growing. The scholarship funds, some of which are profiled here, cover different academic levels and rely on donations to make grants. As the San Diego-based Iranian-American Scholarship Fund declares on its website, "It is our hope that individuals, organizations, and companies throughout the country will join in this important endeavor to help us offer opportunities of scholarships to our young scholars, throughout the nation." Thanks to the generosity of Iranian philanthropists, increasing numbers of talented students are being given the opportunity to pursue their academic goals. Here are some examples: 

Iranian-American Scholarship Fund

The 2007-08 academic year marked the 10th anniversary of the Iranian-American Scholarship Fund, with 75 scholarships awarded so far. Board member Shahri Estakhry says, "We are now a national scholarship fund, and we are extremely proud and enthusiastic of the support we have received nationally from our community for this important cause."

The fund accepts applications from students of Iranian-American heritage in undergraduate (2nd year and above), as well as graduate (Masters) program studies. Applicants must be attending an accredited educational institution within the United States. The fund does not provide any scholarships for studies outside of the United States. For complete requirements please review application section.

After confirmation from their attending school, student applications are reviewed by a team of academic scholars, and at their recommendation the Board of Directors awards the scholarships.

Iranian Artist Scholarship

The Washington, D.C.-based Iranian Artist Scholarship began in 2001 through donations by individuals in the United States. A jury panel selects an artist every year to receive $1,000 towards their studies of Fine Arts. To be eligible you must be an Iranian or Iranian-American artist between the ages of 18-30 living and studying Fine Arts in the United States. The organization holds annual exhibitions showcasing bi-cultural artists and its annual Iranian-American Scholarship in Fine Arts.

Iranian Federated Women's Club (I.F.W.C.)

The Iranian Federated Women's Club is a local non-profit educational and service organization that promotes and introduces the Iranian community to the San Francisco Bay Area. Its local charitable endeavors include scholarships, and projects such as Braille and audio-taped books for the blind and service to the elderly.

The Club's scholarship fund helps students of Iranian descent who are attending an American University and maintain a grade point average of at least 3.5. Students with a history of community work have an advantage. The scholarship award can be as high as $10,000 per year. It also grants scholarships of $500 a year to students at Payvand, an Iranian Cultural School at De Anza College. The school fosters an interest in Iranian culture by teaching Iranian heritage, traditions and language.

Iranian Scholarship Fund

In the spring of 2000, Azadeh Hariri founded the Iranian Youth Scholarship under the umbrella of the Iranian Federated Women's Club (IFWC) with the vision of starting a meaningful scholarship program for Iranian-American students. This later became a basis for the creation of the Iranian Scholarship Foundation (ISF) in 2005.

"In the early days, many students were not aware that such a scholarship existed, and that they could apply for it," Ms. Hariri says. "Now although we have raised our criteria for accepting applications, each year we receive hundreds of applications."

Currently the undergraduate scholarship fund is open to undergraduate students of Iranian descent studying in a four-year college in the U.S. Once a student is awarded the scholarship, which can be up to $10,000, the student is supported for four years or until the student graduates, whichever comes first. The scholarship recipients are required to perform at least 100 hours of volunteer work each year in their community.

Momeni Foundation

Momeni Foundation is dedicated to providing scholarships to graduating high school students and full time college students of Iranian descent anywhere in the world. According to Mojtaba Momeni, the Foundation's president, the idea of providing scholarships to students of Iranian descent originated in 1984, when "I realized that without the benefit of scholarships I could not have achieved what I was achieving in my life."

In 1993, Mr. Momeni started a small local scholarship program through the Iranian Professional Society of Oregon, which in 2001 evolved into Momeni Foundation.  The foundation grants ten scholarships for amounts of $500 to $1000 each to graduating high school students and current college students of Iranian descent at undergraduate, graduate and PhD levels regardless of citizenship or country of residency. In addition, every year at least three scholarships for an amount of $1,000 are awarded to students that are graduating from high school and are citizens or permanent residents of United States.
 

Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute

Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute, a nonprofit organization that promotes scholarship on Iranian culture and heritage has established the Roshan Institute Fellowship for Excellence in Persian Studies at the a number of universities around the country: