Innovation in Interdisciplinary Programs in Humanities in Iran A Case-Study of Imam Sadiq University (ISU)

Imam Sadiq University was established as a non-governmental academic institution in Iran in 1982 aiming at combining certain branches of Humanities with Islamic studies. In this article the author tries to evaluate the success and failure of declared aims of the ISU founders to make Islamic Studies not only relevant to the needs of contemporary societies but rather an integrated part of academic discipline. This paper is an attempt to introduce this innovation in combining Islamic studies with other academic subjects, namely, Political Sciences, Management, Economics, Law and Communications at ISU and tries to explore the challenges facing this endeavor.