Iran Universities Reportedly Ban Women from 77 fields of study

[cali]

The Huffington Post | By Meredith Bennett-Smith Posted: 08/21/2012 3:50 pm Updated: 08/21/2012 4:57 pm

Universities across Iran have announced that almost 80 subjects in both the liberal arts and sciences will be off limits to incoming female scholars.

Female students learned of the bans, which will affect 77 fields across 36 universities, in letters received throughout the past couple of weeks, according to the Telegraph.

Women in Iran are subject to many cultural restrictions. As the Atlantic explains, segregation in the public sector is commonplace and women have to adhere to strict clothing laws. But in the classroom, girls have had the upper hand.

According to the latest data from the U.N.'s Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 52 percent of all Iranian undergrads in 2009 were women. In the sciences, female contributions were even more pronounced, with women making up 68 percent of all graduates.

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[DetlefK]

1. Smart move. Why would an isolated country need educated people anyways.

Quote from "The Telegraph":
However, the science and higher education minister, Kamran Daneshjoo, dismissed the controversy, saying that 90% of degrees remain open to both sexes and that single-gender courses were needed to create "balance".

If they wanted balance, why not turn them into gender-segregated courses?

[cali]

2. they already are gender-segregated