As the school year begins, soaring tuition fees, rising costs of supplies, and mandatory “donations” have turned education into a luxury, pushing hundreds of thousands of children out of school.
From Excitement to Anxiety
Less than two weeks before the start of the new school year in Iran, the excitement traditionally associated with going back to school has been replaced by anxiety and financial pressure. Although the regime’s own constitution formally guarantees free education, families face mounting costs that are far beyond their means.
Private school tuition has skyrocketed, in some cases reaching 200 to 300 million tomans per year. Even public schools, once presumed free, now impose compulsory fees disguised as “contributions,” leaving parents with no choice but to pay or forgo enrollment. In practice, many school administrators openly state that registration will not be finalized until the required payments are made.
The Heavy Price of “Free” Public Education
According to estimates, the minimum cost of sending one child to school in 2025 is around 10 million tomans—roughly equivalent to a full month’s salary for a minimum-wage worker. This includes not only tuition but also transportation, uniforms, and school supplies. The gap between official promises of free education and harsh reality highlights the deepening inequality in the country.
School Transportation and Regional Inequality
Transportation has become another heavy burden. Last year, the average cost of school buses ranged from 20 to 25 million tomans. This year, prices have risen to 30–40 million tomans, with some routes costing even more. Although authorities formally approved a 36.8% increase, parents report that actual charges far exceed the official rates.
The disparities are particularly visible in Tehran, where families in northern districts face transportation fees as high as public school tuition itself. Meanwhile, in poorer southern districts, although the fees are somewhat lower, they remain crushing relative to household incomes. Many families are forced to abandon school bus services, leaving children without reliable means of attending classes.
Rising Costs of Supplies and Daily Necessities
Beyond tuition and transportation, families must also contend with steep increases in basic school necessities.
- Uniforms: Prices for girls’ uniforms have jumped from 750,000 tomans last year to as high as 1.4 million this year.
- Backpacks: Costs range from 1.5 million tomans for the cheapest models to 14 million for brand-name products.
- Shoes: Prices vary from a few million tomans for basic models to many times higher for durable or branded shoes.
- Stationery: A basic school supply set now costs between 3 and 4 million tomans. Even simple items like a pack of pencils, notebooks, or erasers have become symbols of economic inequality.
According to one domestic outlet, even the cheapest supplies—such as a six-pack of red pencils (87,000 tomans) or a simple 100-page notebook (68,000 tomans)—are no longer affordable for many families.
On top of this, parents must also budget for daily school snacks. A simple snack of a small cake and drink now costs 100,000–150,000 tomans per child per day, a significant monthly burden.
Education as a Class Privilege
Observers emphasize that schooling in Iran has been transformed into a class-based privilege. For wealthier families, private schools and luxury supplies are readily available. For poorer households, even the most basic items are increasingly out of reach.
The result is a dramatic rise in school dropouts, a trend even acknowledged in official statistics. Families in disadvantaged regions bear the heaviest burden. For many girls, dropping out of school leads to early marriage, while boys are forced prematurely into low-paying work, perpetuating cycles of poverty and deprivation.
A System that Reproduces Poverty
Article 30 of the Iranian constitution guarantees free education for all. Yet in reality, the regime has not only abandoned this obligation but has actively overseen the commercialization of education.
What was once a universal right is now a privilege reserved for the wealthy. The outcome is an educational system that reproduces inequality and destroys the future of a generation. With the back-to-school season underway, for many Iranian children, classrooms remain out of reach—not because of a lack of will to learn, but because of the crushing economic reality imposed by the regime.
