NU Reshaped Kazakhstan’s Education System, Says Minister Nurbek

Kazakh Minister of Science and Higher Education, Sayasat Nurbek, congratulated the Nazarbayev University (NU) community on its 15th anniversary during a town hall held on campus.

The event brought together university leadership, faculty, and staff to reflect on NU’s journey and future direction. In a video address, Minister Nurbek emphasized NU’s transformative impact on the country’s higher education landscape. According to the minister, the university built «from the ground up» has fundamentally transformed Kazakhstan’s education system, setting a benchmark for quality through cutting-edge research, faculty ranked among the world’s top 2%, and a strong record of high-impact scientific publications:

«NU has become a powerful catalyst for quality assurance and curriculum innovation across Kazakhstan. By building partnerships with leading higher education institutions worldwide, it has set a strong example for our vision of advancing higher education and research. Crucially, NU has established itself at the very heart of Kazakhstan’s transition to a knowledge-based, innovation-driven economy. Today, with large language models, supercomputing, and generative AI, Nazarbayev University is once again at the forefront – leading the nation’s leap into an AI-powered economy and an AI-driven future».

The minister expressed hope that NU would serve as a key source of highly qualified faculty and researchers for the growing network of international branch campuses opening in Kazakhstan.

NU President Professor Waqar Ahmad highlighted major achievements, including the launch of new academic programs, accreditation by the UK’s Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), affirming NU’s commitment to the highest global standards, and rising performance in the Times Higher Education rankings, alongside success in research and student-led initiatives:

«Our achievements in research, teaching, student experience, and societal impact provide a strong foundation for the future. We now have a launchpad from which to achieve milestones that will make both the University and the country proud. To guide this next phase, we are finalizing our new institutional strategy».

During the celebration, faculty and staff who made significant contributions to education were honored with awards from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education.

Instructor Katherine Erdman, and Associate Professors Paula Dupuy and Nikolay Tsyrempilov from the School of Sciences and Humanities received the «Akhmet Baitursynuly» badge. Professor of Philology Aigul Ismakova was awarded for her contribution to the development of the Kazakh language. Professors Ferhat Karaca, Zhumabay Bakenov, Assistant Professor Aibek Niyetkaliyev from School of Engineering and Digital Sciences and Associate Professor Jonas Crus from School of Medicine received the badge «For Contribution to the Development of Science».

Over 20 faculty and staff were also recognized with ministerial certificates, letters of appreciation, higher education distinction badges, and honorary diplomas. The event concluded with a tribute to employees who have served NU for more than a decade.

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/sci/press/news/details/1056720?lang=kk