No specific model has been developed so far to determine the number of clinical faculty members required for medical schools as the most important and most costly workforce. Objectives: Since any action in this regard needs to understand the current status, this study aimed to identify the factors and variables involved in staffing of medical schools in Iran. Methods: This was an analytical descriptive study conducted with qualitative approach in early 2016. Participants included 15 educational

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... deputies of Medical Sciences Universities in Iran who were selected through purposeful intensity sampling. Data were collected using in-depth interviews and analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis via seven-stage framework analysis. Results: Five categories of factors were identified to affect the number of clinical faculties in Medical Sciences Universities of Iran, namely "faculties' functions and range of work", "characteristics of faculty members", "features of the faculties' service delivery location", "department/major properties", and "dominating objectives and policies". Conclusions: A variety of subjective and inaccurate factors are considered for estimating the required number of clinical faculties in Iran among which only a few are the same as criteria for other faculties. The prerequisites that organize the factors and components in the form of a system are: clearly determining the responsibility of clinical education space and then, defining relatively identical financial incentives for various functions of faculty members.