Between Politics and Profits: Private Sociology Classes in Iran

External, domestic, and international political and economic forces have long shaped university teaching and research, often with both constructive and detrimental effects. In recent decades, underfunding, neoliberal funding models, and the politicization of teaching and research have forced universities in many countries to prioritize vocational training as well as research that is aligned with state or private sector priorities. On the educational front, micro-credentialism, MOOCs (massive open online courses), and certificate-based education are, at least in part, a response to these wider political–economic pressures, leading in turn to greater commodification of higher education, the weakening of formal classroom education, and the devaluation of many areas of education and inquiry.

These broader trends sometimes subvert and other times reinforce pre-existing dynamics in local contexts. In the case of Iran, which we focus on here, political censorship, underfunding, and hiring policies favoring ideological loyalty over academic merit have long constrained the teaching of sociology. On the other hand, student-led activism has pushed for higher-quality education and the free exchange of ideas since the early twenty-first century. Students have organized reading groups on popular or banned subjects and formed private classes with politically-ostracized academics. Over time, private, fee-based courses have also emerged to address the quality gap in universities and offer alternative educational platforms.

This article explores private sociology courses in Iran, analyzing their origins, structure, participants, perceived quality, and broader political and academic implications. We argue that these classes illustrate the dual dynamics of commodification and resistance in academia. We have applied a combination of methods, including archival studies, web research, and semi-structured interviews with 28 students and instructors from eight private institutes offering sociology classes. Our study shows that, while some of these developments are peculiar to Iran, in some respects they align with broader shifts in higher education throughout the world, especially the commodification of knowledge. However, in the Iranian context, private sociology classes also function as a space of potential resistance to state-imposed constraints.

Private classes: from reading circles to profiteering

Reading circles and lecture series have long existed in Iran. However, fee-based sociology courses mainly emerged in the private sector in the 2010s at educational institutes such as Porsesh and Rokhdad-i Tazeh (two prominent Tehran-based institutes). Academic associations, including the Iranian Sociology Association, have also begun offering fee-based courses. Courses offered on these platforms range from niche and trendy theoretical subjects (Phenomenology of Spirit, Derrida in Plato’s Pharmacy) to applied methodologies (Discourse Analysis, NVivo Coding). The institutes exemplify a form of “shadow education,” operating alongside formal institutions but shaped by different incentives and logics.

Many private courses are lecture-based, with limited participation and no syllabi, evaluations, or assignments. A few private institutes issue certificates, which are primarily used by PhD applicants to strengthen their applications. Course fees, which vary widely, and limited income from class recordings are the source of profit for these institutes. While financial incentives exist, private sociology institutes are not highly profitable; of the eight institutes we identified, two had gone bankrupt.

Not surprisingly, institutes prioritize low-cost, lecture-based, and popular topics. Initially, these were trendy theoretical topics that had a guaranteed audience among the intellectual stratum of major urban centers such as Tehran, which is home to several major universities and where intellectual circles have long flourished. But these classes have their critics, too. One of the interviewees mentioned how profit motives lead the private institutes to give a larger platform to niche Western theoretical debates: “These institutes set the agenda. They are powerful businesses and operate like merchants. And what is the merchandise? [Social] thought is the merchandise; thought is irrelevant to our social and economic situation.” (Interviewee #5).

Privatized subaltern counterpublics

These spaces function as what Fraser would call subaltern counterpublics: semi-autonomous forums where marginalized voices engage in critical discourse outside state control. Participants come from various academic backgrounds, and their motivations include academic exploration, political frustration, networking, and an escape from university pressures. Many see these classes as an intellectual refuge, particularly during the 2010s following the suppression of the 2009 Green Movement, which greatly affected universities. For politically outcast sociologists, private courses provide both academic engagement and financial sustenance, while university professors with a secure income also teach these classes, which they see as freer spaces to express critical views.

Despite requiring state permits, private institutes allow more open discussions than universities. Students enjoy the relaxed power dynamics, contrasting with rigid university hierarchies. Some see these institutes as sources of intellectual prestige, particularly the now-defunct Porsesh, which possessed considerable symbolic capital and elite social capital in its heyday. Private classes also attract students who seek learning opportunities with professors outside their universities.

Participants in private classes often criticize university sociology programs as ineffective, leading them to seek alternatives. While private classes offer more engagement, opinions on quality vary. Some value specialized knowledge, while others feel the courses merely commercialize intellectualism, providing little that is not publicly accessible. Critics see the risk of commodifying thought itself, turning complex theoretical work into marketable content for individual consumption.

Many private classes offer an intellectual space for students seeking deeper theoretical engagement beyond limited university curricula, though critics argue they often glorify Western thought without addressing its relevance to the Iranian context. One interviewee likened the experience to spiritual catharsis, where participants feel intellectually enriched without substantive learning. That interviewee defended official university education, arguing that it exposes students to social research in Iran, unlike the detached theoretical focus of many private classes.

Impacts

Private classes offer a contested but vital alternative to Iran’s restrictive academic environment. Some argue that these classes undermine universities by offering high-quality alternatives and, therefore, weaken student activism within academia. Others consider private classes essential to preserve independent sociological discourse in a state-controlled academic environment. They argue that universities are too rigid to change, making external intellectual spaces necessary. Some see private classes as a new, albeit flawed, platform for critical engagement: “If these institutes shut down, what is the alternative? The state will control everything” (Interviewee #23).

Private classes also expose deeper structural tensions within Iran’s higher education system, particularly around the question of reform and institutional legitimacy. While some believe private competition pressures universities to improve, others worry that these institutes serve as distractions, allowing the state to avoid reform. For many, private sociology classes offer a contested but vital alternative to Iran’s restrictive academic environment.

The socio-economic impact of private classes is also noteworthy. Decades of market-driven changes have reshaped Iran’s higher education landscape, making access increasingly stratified. Admission to major, state-funded universities has become highly competitive and open to gaming by higher-income families. In addition, while these universities are supposed to offer free tuition, loopholes have increasingly been found and utilized to charge fees. The decline of educational quality in public universities and the rise of private, fee-based courses reinforce existing inequalities and further restrict access to quality education.

In many countries, micro-credentialism stems from corporate pressures on universities. In Iran, fee-based courses arise from political contestation and weaknesses in state-controlled academia. Initially, they functioned as intellectual spaces for theoretical debate, but they now include skill-based training and certificates that enhance academic and job prospects.

Conclusion

Private sociology classes in Iran represent more than just a market adaptation; they occupy a contested space where commodification meets resistance. As a form of shadow education, they mirror neoliberal logics of credentialism while also creating counterpublic spaces that challenge state control and intellectual conformity. These privatized responses to systemic political constraints reflect broader shifts in Iranian higher education, where public institutions are weakened by underfunding, ideological interference, and rising inequality.

Future research should examine how the rise of social media as a site for intellectual engagement affects public knowledge dynamics, reconfiguring the boundaries between formal and informal education. Social media platforms might expand public sociology, extending critical discourse beyond the classroom, yet further commercialize knowledge through branding and content monetization. Whether this shift democratizes access to sociological insight or simply replicates market logic in a digital form remains an open question.

Reyhaneh Javadi, University of Alberta, Canada <javadi1@ualberta.ca>
Zohreh Bayatrizi, University of Alberta, Canada <bayatriz@ualberta.ca>