Rufat Eyvaz oglu Azizov was born on April 7, 1980 in Baku.

In 1998, as the winner of the International Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad, Rufat Azizov was admitted to the faculty of Chemistry of the Lomonosov Moscow State University without an exam - out of competition, by participating in development programs, he continued his post-graduate studies at the university, in 2006 he defended his thesis and received the scientific degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in chemical sciences. In 2008, he was admitted to the professional membership of the London Institute of Materials and was awarded the title of "Chartered Scientist" by the British scientific society. In 2014-2016, he completed the joint MBA program of ADA and Maastricht Universities, and in 2018-2020, he completed the higher business management, "Executive MBA" program of Oxford University (Said Business School). In addition, he participated in many courses and trainings. Among them, Cornell University-higher management, George Washington University-project management and Oxford University-artificial intelligence program can be noted.

In 2005-2012, he gained experience in international oil and gas projects as an engineer at the BP company, and worked as a manager of material-corrosion engineering and technological integrity management. During this period, he was promoted to the positions of senior engineer and team leader in the field of corrosion-inspection engineering. In 2009, 2010 and 2011, he won the "Engineer of the Year" competitions of BP Azerbaijan company in various nominations. In 2013-2020, he managed metal industry projects, production operations and strategic development programs as the Executive Director of the Unimetal group of companies operating in the field of metal production. He has led the design, construction and operations management of metallurgical, rolling and profiling, tube and profile manufacturing, galvanized and polymer coated iron manufacturing plants.

Rufat Azizov was closely connected with education during the time he worked in the industry, so he attended the Baku Higher Oil School"s MBA program, chemical engineering master"s program, Project Management School (PMI certificate),and he taught in the Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University and George Washington University"s joint master"s degree "Education Policy and Management" program. He worked as an expert in the program of commercialization of scientific results at the Innovation Center of Oxford University.

By the order of the Minister of Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated January 7, 2021, he was appointed as the director of the Institute of Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan. During his tenure at the Institute of Education, he led educational research, updating educational programs, improving textbooks, organizing and certifying teachers" professional development programs, implementing system-important pilot projects, and developing new content programs at the higher education level.

Rufat Azizov is the author of more than 30 scientific works in the fields of chemical catalysis, corrosion and biotechnology, including 1 patent and 6 articles included in the "SCOPUS" scientific-metric database. In addition, in 2021-2023, he led 45 scientific-research projects covering various stages and levels of education at the Institute of Education. He participated as a scientific editor in 9 of the 23 books prepared on the results of these studies and as a scientific consultant in 3 of them.

Rufat Azizov actively participates in the training of highly qualified scientific and pedagogical   staff. Under his leadership, 3 people are studying in the Doctor of Philosophy program at the Institute of Education, majoring in 5802.01 - organization and planning of education.

Rufat Eyvaz oglu Azizov was appointed rector of Sumgayit State University by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev dated September 13, 2023.

He is married and has two children.