Iran and Iraq Launch Reciprocal Student Scholarships
Iraqi and Iranian students can compete for annual scholarship slots in each other's countries under a new exchange.
Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Scholarships
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Iraq and Iran have agreed to a reciprocal scholarship program under which Iraq will award 200 scholarships annually to Iranian students and Iran will provide 100 scholarships each year to Iraqi students. The plan was discussed in Baghdad in early November, when academic officials talked about broader scientific cooperation between universities in the two countries.
Why it matters
For students in both countries, the program opens a funded path to study abroad, with recipients drawn from applicants with top scores on high school diploma examinations. The talks also show an effort to expand educational ties between Iran and Iraq that could widen options for students in engineering and other technical fields.
Scholarships will go to Iraqi students with the highest scores on high school diploma examinations, such as mathematics and geometry for engineering fields. Students must upload their documents by December 2 to resolve outstanding issues.
The players
Northern Technical University
An engineering technical college in Mosul, Iraq, founded in 2014, whose president met Iranian officials in Baghdad.
Association of Iraqi Graduates of Iranian Universities
An Iraqi association of graduates of Iranian universities that organized the academic session in Baghdad.
Yasser Abdul-Zahra Al-Hajjaj
Iraq's ambassador to Tehran, who announced the scholarship remarks in a meeting with Saeed Habiba.
The details
Officials from both countries met in Baghdad to discuss how the scholarship exchange and wider academic cooperation would operate. Talks covered organizing joint training courses, exchanging professors and students, conducting collaborative research, and sharing laboratory and research center facilities. Iraqi students raised concerns about post-graduate issues during the academic session organized by the Association of Iraqi Graduates of Iranian Universities in Baghdad.
Timeline
November 2: Iraq's ambassador to Tehran discussed the scholarship plans with Saeed Habiba.
December 2: Deadline for students to upload their documents.
Education Landscape
The scholarship exchange follows a memorandum of understanding that Iran and Iraq agreed to implement, placing it within an ongoing effort to strengthen bilateral academic ties. Iran's higher education system is ranked 15th to 16th globally, which officials cite as a reason its universities attract students from neighboring countries.
Students who want to apply for a reciprocal scholarship should upload their documents before the December 2 deadline. Applicants should confirm eligibility and document requirements directly with their home country's education office or the awarding university's admissions office.
The takeaway
The reciprocal scholarship plan gives Iraqi and Iranian students a new funded route to study in each other's countries, with awards tied to high school exam performance. Students interested in applying should track the December 2 document deadline and check requirements with the relevant education authorities.
Further reading
For background on how these awards work, explore the Scholarships section.
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