Introduction: Today, with the expansion of communications and the globalization of cultures, countries are looking to attract tourists and international clients to share their culture and boost their economies. Among this, attracting international students is particularly important because their presence in a country for education helps them get acquainted with the real culture, making it easier to adapt to their new environment and change the attitudes of the local people. Over the past two decades, the number of international students worldwide has more than doubled, and countries in the region are in tight competition to attract these students. Given its favorable conditions, including religious and cultural commonalities, tourism attractions, and its academic standing, Iran needs to make efforts with sound policy-making to secure a good position in this competitive landscape. This article aims to explore how to attract international students to medical sciences universities while addressing existing challenges and proposing solutions to improve conditions and increase the enrollment of foreign students.

Acknowledgments: The Social Determinants of Health Research Center is hereby acknowledged and appreciated.

Availability of data and materials: The datasets analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Conflicts of interest: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of the results of this article.

Consent for publication: Not applicable

Ethical approval and consent to participate: Not applicable

Funding: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Authors’ Contributions: N. Khodadai and A. Sabbagh designed and supervised the study, carried out the project, and collected the data. N. Khodadai provided consultation, performed the statistical analysis, prepared and revised the manuscript draft, and approved the final version with some revisions. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.

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