Major Review of Kazakhstan's Higher Education System Reveals Mismatch Between Labor Market Needs and Graduate Skills
Kazakhstan overhauls universities to bridge skills gap with labor market demands
Kazakhstan is set to overhaul its higher education system after an analysis exposed a serious imbalance between labor market demands and the actual training of specialists, as well as redundancy and fragmentation in many academic programs. Over 700 degree programs will be phased out for new enrollments, while outdated and duplicate fields will give way to new priority specializations, reports our correspondent.
Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Aida Balayeva outlined the key approaches to this reform. According to her, the review identified a significant gap between employer needs and the skills graduates acquire, along with an oversupply of certain programs and their excessive fragmentation.
Currently, universities offer 142 programs in economics and 115 in law—often within the same institution. Many of these suffer from excessive academic focus without a research foundation, creating a disconnect between theory and real-world practice. These are not isolated issues but systemic failures requiring comprehensive solutions, Balayeva emphasized. More than 700 programs will be discontinued—503 across 78 universities to eliminate redundancy, and another 235 in 26 fields to address fragmentation. All currently enrolled students will be allowed to complete their studies, but no new admissions will be accepted for these programs.
In their place, 21 new priority fields will be launched, including AI & Data, Bioengineering, Smart Agriculture, and EdTech. Another 35 programs will undergo deep transformation, shifting toward practice-oriented education.
Special attention will be given to implementing work-based learning approaches. Following UNESCO recommendations, workplace training will account for up to 25% of bachelor's programs and up to 40% of master's programs. This is expected to bridge the gap between academic preparation and the real needs of employers.
The reform aims to make higher education more flexible, modern, and responsive to the specific demands of industries and regions. A core principle of the new model is stronger alignment between education policy and economic development.
Authorities anticipate that these measures will reduce program duplication, improve the quality of training, and concentrate resources on truly in-demand fields.
