NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s First President Nursultan Nazarbayev congratulated 963 Nazarbayev University (NU) students on completing their education at a May 31 graduation ceremony.
Nursultan Nazarbayev at the Nazarbayev University graduation ceremony. Photo credit: akorda.kz.
NU is an English-medium autonomous educational and research university in Nur-Sultan and was founded on Nazarbayev’s initiative in 2010. It offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programmes developed in partnership with the world’s leading universities.
More than 3,580 students have graduated from the university since 2010. Of the 2,617 graduates of the first four graduating classes, approximately one third chose to pursue further education, and two thirds sought employment.
“The graduates of the university are competitive specialists that are in demand at home and abroad,” Nazarbayev said upon congratulating the university’s fifth graduating cohort. “Among the 963 students completing their education today, 565 are graduating with a bachelor’s degree, 378 with a master’s degree and 20 with a doctoral degree. More than 40 percent of bachelor’s degree graduates have decided to continue their studies, having received invitations from the best universities in the world.”
One of the university’s five strategic goals in the 2018-2030 Strategy centres on innovation and translating research into production. In his speech, Nazarbayev singled out students’ commercialisation projects, such as NU Technopark’s May 14 launch of Kazakhstan’s first domestic online service for precision farming, EGIStic, on the domestic market.
“In Boston, a team of (NU’s) School of Science and Technology students received a gold medal at the 2018 International Genetics Engineered Machine competition,” he added.
Driven by their intelligence and creativity, the younger generations will lead in the implementation of Kazakhstan’s new initiatives, Nazarbayev said at last year’s ceremony.
“2019 is the Year of Youth in Kazakhstan. Our youth’s education is a key factor in the competitiveness of our country in the modern world. The future of Kazakhstan depends on you and your knowledge, energy and patriotism. We are taking every measure so that you can fully realise your potential and opportunities,” he said, on a similar note, this year.
The NU brand is now recognised in the global academic, government, business, medical and informational technology communities. The university seeks to join global rankings by 2030 and will increase the number of students to 8,000 by 2025, of which 10 percent will be international students, Nazarbayev notes in the 2018-2030 Strategy.
“The (university) project has become a breakthrough and leader in its field not only in Kazakhstan but throughout the entire post-Soviet space. Within a short space of time, the university grew into an elite academic institution in the training of professional workers and development of scientific research and development,” he said at the graduation ceremony.
“The university’s main asset, of course, is its intellectual potential,” he concluded, addressing the graduates. “You should not only be highly qualified specialists but also actively participate in public life, realising your civic responsibilities. Whichever path you choose – to further pursue education, work for the good of the country, represent Kazakhstan abroad or start your own business – I wish you a bright path and the realisation of your plans.”
