About Razi University

Founded in January 1973, Razi University is a public institution of higher education located in Kermanshah, a major city in western Iran. The University began its academic journey as the Faculty of Science, established through the initiative of Dr. Abdul-Ali Guya. In its first academic year, the institution admitted approximately 200 students to four disciplines: Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics.

Over the decades, Razi University has developed from a specialized faculty into a comprehensive university with a broad range of academic and research activities. During its early years of expansion, several institutions, including the Kermanshah Faculty of Medicine, the Sanandaj Teacher Training Faculty, and the Ilam Faculty of Animal Husbandry, were incorporated into the University. These institutions subsequently became independent universities and are now known as Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, the University of Kurdistan, and Ilam University, respectively.

Today, Razi University comprises 14 faculties and 64 academic departments, offering educational opportunities across a diverse range of disciplines. With a student population of more than 12,000 at undergraduate and graduate levels, the University provides an academic environment that brings together education, research, and scholarly engagement.

The University is supported by more than 450 faculty members, including professors, associate professors, and assistant professors, whose teaching and research activities contribute to the advancement of knowledge across a wide range of academic fields. Through its educational programs and scholarly activities, Razi University seeks to foster intellectual development, encourage innovation and critical inquiry, and prepare students and researchers to engage with the changing needs of society.

Situated in Kermanshah, a historically and culturally significant region of western Iran, Razi University also benefits from its geographical position as a center of academic activity connecting different regions of the country. Building on more than five decades of experience in higher education, the University continues to strengthen its academic capacities, expand its research activities, and develop constructive engagement with the wider national and international academic community.

Dr. Abdul-Ali Guya: Founder of Razi University

Dr. Abdul-Ali Guya was born in Qom in 1921. At an early age, he moved with his family to Kermanshah, where he spent his formative years and completed his primary and secondary education. In 1938, he received his high school diploma in Mathematics and subsequently moved to Tehran to pursue higher education at the Faculty of Science of the University of Tehran, where he studied Physics and Chemistry.

In 1941, Dr. Guya completed his BSc in Physics and Chemistry and began his teaching career in Hamedan. After three years, he returned to Tehran, where he continued teaching at high schools as well as at several faculties and colleges. In 1947, he obtained a bachelor's degree in Judiciary Law and an MSc in Physics. In 1960, he went to France to pursue doctoral studies and, in 1963, received his PhD in Mathematical Physics. He returned to Tehran later that same year.

Following his return to Iran, Dr. Guya joined the University of Mashhad, where he taught Physics at the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Medical Sciences, as well as Theology at the Faculty of Theology. His interdisciplinary approach to teaching was particularly distinctive. In his Theology classes, he often initiated discussions from the perspective of Physics and developed them towards religious themes. This approach was unusual for students of the Faculty of Theology at the time and left a lasting impression on many of his students, who continued to recall those classes years later.

In 1971, Dr. Guya was appointed by the University of Mashhad to travel to Kermanshah and undertake the establishment of a Faculty of Science and several other faculties. Through this responsibility, he played a central role in laying the foundations of what would become Razi University and is therefore regarded as the founder of the University.

In 1978, following the Iranian Revolution, Dr. Guya's extensive academic and religious background and his experience in Tehran, Mashhad, and Kermanshah led to his appointment by Astan-e Qods-e Razavi as the director of the Malek National Museum and Library in Tehran.

Dr. Abdul-Ali Guya passed away on October 1, 1995. His contribution to the establishment of higher education in Kermanshah and, in particular, to the foundation of Razi University remains an important part of the University's institutional history.