# Soore University

Soore University (SU) (Persian: دانشگاه سوره, Dânešgâh-e Sure) is an International nonprofit university located in Tehran, Iran. Soore University was founded in 1994, and it is considered among the top art universities in Iran alongside Tehran University of Art and College of Fine Arts at University of Tehran. Historically, Soore University has been particularly strong in Graphic Design and Cinema among arts.

## History

The Art Department of the Islamic Development Organization began to work independently in the early 1970s in the area of teaching various art courses. Thousands of trainees from different parts of the country got instructed in such art programs by these curriculums and later made use of their educations formally or informally.
At the beginning of the Ali Khamenei's leadership period, he emphasized that committed artists should actively attend and play their roles in a way that is suitable to the comprehensive dimensions of the cultural invasion. Following his words, the Art Department of the organization alongside the Artistic Sect of the Islamic Republic of Iran got determined to set up an academic unit. It was an effort to tend the literature of the Islamic revolution by cultivating the committed and religious alumni. To answer the mentioned policy, Soore Educational Institution, which had been initially created to independently hold the training courses, was formally registered and continued its activity under the title of Soore Higher Education Institution.
In 2003, the vice-chancellor of the Art Department of Islamic Advertisement Organization proceeded to establish Soore non-profit higher education institution of the second type. After meeting with the approval of the High Council and consolidating its acts to acknowledge second stage institutions, the Soore non-profit Higher Education Institution of the second stage was promoted to the first stage institute in 1997. Soore higher education institution had two other branches. One in Isfahan which was established in 1996 with two courses in cinema and theatre and the branch of Ardabil which was founded on 17 November 1996 with two programs in architecture at the associate degree and restoration at the bachelors level.
Furthermore, in 2010, after coming to a principle agreement, the Soore Higher Education Institution was converted into a university. In 2012, with the permission of the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, Soore University managed to hold courses in Cinema and Islamic Architecture at the masters' level. After obtaining the related license in 2013, the higher education programming and development council of the Science Ministry declared for changing the name of Soore Higher Education Institution to Soore University. In 2020, Soore University accepted its founding PhD cohort, in the field of Communication studies and later in 2022, its first cohort, in the field of Comparative Islamic Art History.
Also, for running the programs in Cultural Relations and Advertisement, Media Laws and Media Management at the masters' level, the required arrangements were made, and Soore succeeded to obtain the necessary permissions for holding the courses in Cultural Relations and Advertisement at the masters' level along with Journalism and Public Relations at the bachelors' level in 2006-2007. Since February 2007, university students were taking these three courses. In 2009, Soore managed to run the first course in the Management of Cultural Affairs at the bachelors' level. In the same year, with the permission of the Science Ministry, Soore began to accept university students in some courses without holding the entrance exams. In 2013, the Higher Education Programming and Development office of the Science Ministry declared for running the Management of Public Relations course at the bachelor's level and the courses on Media Management and the Management of the Cultural Programming at the masters' level.

## Schools and programs
### School of Art

The art faculty of Soore University commenced its work as the most significant, the biggest and oldest faculty of Soore University on 28 8th 2006 with the approval of the trustees' board and the board of directors with the aim of dividing the educational and scientific activities in the specialized fields and areas and with the intention of attaining the formal and verified structures of the Science, Research and technology ministry.

### School of Architecture & Urban Planning

The faculty of architecture was founded in 1993 and the aim of establishing this faculty is to ameliorate the cultural components in architecture and introduce and updating the Iranian architecture considering the current needs of the Iranian society and effective steps have been taken towards accomplishing these goals by employing the inside experienced professors and making the relationship with the universities of the other countries.

### School of Culture & Communication

Although the foundation of Soore University was laid based on running art courses and educating creative artists, as the times was passing, the new requirements were revealed to the authorities of the university forcing them to review the goals and policies of the university. Accordingly, the proposal for establishing new courses was posed until an agreement was finally reached to run the journalism and public relations courses for the BA degree and culture communications and propaganda courses in master's degree.

## Notable alumni

* Azadeh Samadi
* Behafarid Ghafarian
* Elsa Firouz Azar
* Hosein Amiri Domari
* Houtan Shakiba
* Majid Barzegar
* Majid Habibi
* Mehdi Saki
* Mitra Jashni
* Mohammad Hossein Mahdavian
* Anahita Norouzi
* Mohammad Reza Hedayati
* Mohammad Reza Fartousi
* Mohammad Rasoulof
* Mohammad Tolouei
* Saeed Roustayi
* Sahar Dolatshahi
* Saman Salur
* Shahram Mokri
* Pedram Pour-Amiri
* Pooneh Hajimohammadi
* Iranian film director and screenwriter Saman Salur
* Iranian filmmaker Shahram Mokri
* Iranian film director and screenwriter Saeed Roustayi
* Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof
* Iranian film director and screenwriter Mohammad Hossein Mahdavian
* Iranian actress Azadeh Samadi
* Iranian actress Sahar Dolatshahi
* Iranian actor and dubber Houtan Shakiba

## Notable faculty

* Alireza Khamseh, cinema and television actor and alumnus of Paris 8 with specialization in Pantomime.
* Bahram Dehghani, award-winning film editor and alumnus of USC School of Cinematic Arts.
* Behrouz Gharibpour, theatre director and pioneer of traditional Persian puppet theatre.
* Bozorgmehr Hosseinpour, cartoonist, comic artist, and art director.
* Farzad Motamen, film director.
* Hayedeh Safiyari, award-winning film editor, and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
* Hengameh Mofid, film/theater actress, director, dramatist, specialized in puppet-theatre.
* Houshang Moradi Kermani, writer best known for children's and young adult fiction, two-times nominated for Hans Christian Andersen Award.
* Majid Barzegar, former alumnus and award-winning filmmaker.
* Masoud Sekhavatdoust, writer, composer and musician.
* Massoud Farasati, famous film critic, and alumnus of ENSBA and Paris 8.
* Maryam Salimi, writer, journalist, communications scholar.
* Mehdi Saeedi, graphic artist and designer, calligrapher, and typographer, only Iranian designer featured on The History of Graphic Design book alongside Reza Abedini.
* Mohammad Shams Langeroodi, renowned poet, author, historian of modern literature and poetry, and university lecturer.
* Mohammad Reza Aslani renowned filmmaker, art theorist, graphic designer and poet known mostly for his experimental films and documentaries.
* Mohammad Reza Delpak, award-winning sound designer, known for his works with Abbas Kiarostami, Asghar Farhadi, Majid Majidi, etc.
* Nima Aziminejad, omposer, setar player and sound engineer.
* Sanam Pasha, songwriter, vocalist and vocal coach in rock and metal music and alumna of Berklee College of Music.
* Shahram Mokri, former alumnus and award-winning filmmaker, winner of the only Special Award for Innovative Content at Venice's Orizzonti.
* Zahra Rahnavard, academic, artist, and politician, former member of university's board of trustees.