Iranian universities show interest in cooperation with UNN in quantum technologies
On 19 July, Oleg Trofimov, Acting Rector of Lobachevsky University, and Professor Hadi Goudarzi, Counsellor for Science and Education at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Russian Federation, discussed the prospects of expanding cooperation in the field of science and education. The meeting took place at Lobachevsky University as part of the official visit of the Iranian delegation to the Nizhny Novgorod region.
Lobachevsky University's current partners in Iran are the University of Tehran, Sharif University of Technology and Mazendaran University. Areas of common interest include joint research in economics, innovation, chemistry, international relations, biology, materials science, physics and astronomy. Since 2015, UNN has been a member of the Association of Higher Education Institutions of Russia and Iran, which includes 42 leading universities of both countries.
"The world is changing, while the relations between our countries have been and continue to be friendly. We have a very strong potential for joint work, and we would like to expand our cooperation, establish contacts with a large number of universities in Iran, increase the number of research and educational areas in which this interaction is implemented. In particular, we want to develop the field of quantum technologies, we are ready to carry out joint projects. UNN has joined the Interuniversity Quantum Network, where Nizhny Novgorod University will be a member along with Moscow and St. Petersburg universities. There is a great field for joint work here, there are young scientists who are interested in this subject", Oleg Trofimov noted.
Professor Hadi Goudarzi had a chance to see Lobachevsky University's capabilities in the field of research and education. The guest particularly noted the scale of the university and its strong faculty:
"Lobachevsky University is a university with a rich history, one of the largest universities in Russia that takes part in the Priority 2030 programme. Taking into account that UNN is among the 17 universities that are participants of the Research Leadership track, it has great potential, and our cooperation can be expanded. We are particularly interested in areas related to physics, and Lobachevsky University has two specialised faculties - Physics and Radiophysics - with very strong research facilities. Quantum computing is of particular interest, and Iran has at least two universities that want to explore this area. It is also necessary to expand cooperation in terms of student exchange and increase the number of Iranian students who study at Lobachevsky University, since the university provides a very high level of training".
During the meeting, the participants discussed the recruitment of Iranian students for master's and PhD studies at UNN, in particular through the system of international Olympiads, as well as the development of academic cooperation with Iranian universities, including student exchange programmes, network programmes and joint research. Special emphasis was placed on Lobachevsky University’s successful experience in training Iranian professionals: several years ago, a group of 30 faculty members from Iranian universities took a course to study Russian as a foreign language before enrolling in PhD programmes at UNN and other Russian universities.
Currently, 26 Iranian citizens are studying at Lobachevsky University, 21 of them are studying medicine. According to Hadi Goudarzi, 98% of Iranian students who study outside their home country choose medicine. There are plans to expand the number of specialisations in which Iranians can study at Lobachevsky University.
Following the meeting, an agreement was reached to maintain close contacts for developing the academic potential of UNN and promoting Lobachevsky University in Iran.
