State-Centric Higher Education Governance and the Challenge of the University-Power Industry Gap in Developing Technical and Engineering Human Capital

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 PhD in Higher Education Development Planning, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

2 Assistant Professor of Higher Education Governance, Institute for Social and Cultural Studies, Tehran, Iran

3 Assistant Professor, Management and Social Science Department, Niroo Research Institute, Tehran, Iran

10.22034/jstp.2026.12032.1923

Abstract

The development of technical and engineering human capital, as a cornerstone of development, necessitates an effective relationship between universities and industries within the framework of higher education governance. In Iran, this relationship is controlled and commanded by the state under a state-centric governance approach, a situation that has created a gap between universities and the industry in the optimal development of technical and engineering human capital. A phenomenological study of the perceptions and experiences of seventeen representatives from key governance stakeholders (government, university, and the power industry), all with distinguished backgrounds in human capital policymaking and planning, revealed that the origin of this gap stems from the monopoly of state ideology over the provision of higher education, implemented through a bureaucratic structure. This structure, by disrupting an optimal and organic relationship between universities and industries, has led to siloed policymaking on one hand, and has created opportunities for corruption and conflicts of interest on the other. Under these conditions, the development of technical and engineering human capital is conducted within a highly inward-looking educational system, detached from understanding and engaging with external realities and labor market needs, which has resulted in a decline in quality. The solution to this situation lies in redefining the state’s role from one of direct management (proprietorship) to one of support and regulation, and establishing a participatory and rational governance model among the state, university, and industry for the optimal development of technical and engineering human capital.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

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