Fundamental Factors Effective in Developing a Local Model for Virtual University of Medical Sciences: A Qualitative Study

Background: Many studies have defined the term ‘virtual university’ as a learner-centered university. Over the past 20 years, the number of virtual universities, especially in medical sciences, has grown rapidly, and the number of online curricula is constantly increasing. On the other hand, regarding the challenges of higher education in the third millennium and considering the 20-Year National Vision of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the potential of information and communication technology, the need to move towards virtual academic education is felt more than ever. Objectives: Accordingly, attempts were made to discover the main and necessary factors affecting the development of a model for virtual university of medical sciences regarding Iran's cultural and social dimensions. Moreover, considering inadequate qualitative research, it was decided to conduct a qualitative study by examining the subjective phenomena and informants’ experiences in the field of virtual university of medical sciences in Iran to reveal their understanding of the main factors affecting the development of the local model for virtual universities of medical sciences. Methods: This qualitative study adopted a thematic content analysis approach. Seven participants were selected using the maximum-intensity sampling method. The data were collected using semi-structured interviews and analyzed according to Braun and Clarke's six-step comparative thematic analysis method. To observe data rigor, Guba and Lincoln's four criteria were used. Results: Out of the seven participants, three cases were male, and four persons were female. The analysis of the data resulted in 520 primary codes, 38 subcategories, and 13 categories. According to the participants' experiences, the four main themes extracted in this study were educational manifestation, technological appearance, Iranian context, and institutional virtual medical education. Conclusions: The data analysis revealed that the virtual university model could be developed by considering curriculum design based on learners’ cognitive needs as well as the effects of technologies on the formation of virtual education culture. Moreover, theories underpinning the traditional education system are no longer responding to the new changes in virtual education, and there is an urgent need for scientific theories tailored to virtual education to manage technology.