Returning home

Migration is a tough decision to make for everyone. Its consequences are inevitable and not clear in the first place. There were tourists who never came back home and those who had dreams of living abroad that never came true. Returning home is even a tougher decision; it has been said that migrants do not make the mistake for the second time. The complex economic and social situation of Iran, instability and ambiguities make the decision more and more difficult. Basically decision making involves a risk factor; however, when all your options are not clear, that would be a highly complex process. An Iranian migrant who lived and worked for several years outside Iran is faced with a dilemma.
On one hand, outlook on life is less ambiguous in the West and, on the other, disadvantages of living abroad are clear (being far from family and etc). This makes it possible to do a cost-benefit analysis. Ambiguity in living in Iran poses difficulties for them. After living outside Iran for a while, they are not familiar with decision making under ambiguity.
A migrant could be an entrepreneur who is interested in investing back home or a postgraduate who is in a dilemma over future plans to stay or return. The working options in Iran might be clear (private sector or academic careers), yet they are vaguely aware of working conditions, costs and benefits and chances of success. They have seen returnees being stuck in faculty recruitment process for several months while in developed countries the process is short and clear. Some hear about dozens of businesses going under as a result of fluctuations in the currency exchange rate or the skyrocketing real estate prices which made it a dream to own a home in Iran.
In order to reverse the trend of brain drain, our academic institutions must attract highly-educated and talented Iranians. Our neighbor, Turkey has done a great job in the flow of return migration by rewarding the returnees with large bonuses while universities and research laboratories have given the returning intellectual elites excellent incentives. We need to do the same thing in Iran and attract them as faculty members. In our case, it is not essential that financial incentives rival those of western universities. There is an instinctive desire among Iranians to help their country and fellow citizens. All we need to do is to reduce the ambiguity and facilitate their return.
They are mostly granted study funds. Therefore, Iran's Ministry of Science, Research & Technology is not obliged to pay any costs. The recruitment process must begin prior to their graduation in order to cut the red tape and facilitate their return. Recruitment assessment methods in Iran's universities are different from those of the West and this is also an issue to be tackled.
Iran's government needs to try its hardest to facilitate the return of capital and human capital to the country by providing job opportunities, cutting the red tape and reducing ambiguity in business environment.