Purpose: Examining the factors affecting the social role of the higher education system can help in its improvement. Thus, this research aimed to identify and rate the factors affecting the social role of the academic system based on interpretive structural equations. Methodology: Regarding aim, this study was of applied type and considering method of implementation, it was cross-sectional. The research population consisted of the qualitative section of documents and texts related to the research and experts of this field. Fifty documents and texts were chosen via purposive sampling method, and 10 experts were selected via purposive sampling method as the sample. The data were collected through taking notes from the documents and texts as well as surveying experts about a researcher-made questionnaire, and analyzed further via interpretive structural equations method in PLS software. Findings: The results indicated that the factors affecting the social role of the higher education system include 11 factors including making the academic curricula challenging, promoting social participation forms, preparing students for public jobs, active civic curriculum, training and learning social responsibility, research-orientedness, social projects, training qualified individuals, attention to the views of social beneficiaries in the academic system, and training social sensitivity. The results of interpretive structural equations indicated that the factor of promoting social participation problem claimed the first rank, followed by research-orientedness and training qualified individuals at the second level, training and learning social responsibility at the third level, factors of making academic curricula challenging and preparing students for public jobs at the fourth level, factors of active civic curriculum factors, attention to the views of social beneficiaries in the academic system and training social sensitivity at the fifth level, factor of developing eligible citizens at the sixth level, and factor of social projects at the seventh level. Based on that, the interpretive structural model of factors affecting the social role of the academic system was designed. Conclusion: Based on the present study results, planners and experts of higher education can benefit from the present study results, and use the identified factors affecting the social role of the academic system for improving the status of university and acquiring competitive advantage.
