Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov has responded to a parliamentary request on switching bachelor's programs to three-year study, infohub.kz reports.
Earlier, MP Makhambet Khasenov said Kazakh businesses lack specialists and therefore proposed shortening students' study time. According to him, investment can be attracted, a plant built and equipment purchased, but if there is no specialist able to operate it, the investment does not translate into a full economic result. Khasenov believes the three-year format is not simply a reduction of the program but the mastery of the same knowledge and competencies through a more efficient format of learning.
As Olzhas Bektenov noted, international practice includes various bachelor's models, both three-year and four-year programs. The duration of study is determined by the specifics of national education systems, the content of educational programs and requirements for professional qualifications. "In Kazakhstan, the legislative framework allows the educational process to be organized flexibly while ensuring strict compliance with requirements for the quality of professional training," the response says.
The prime minister stressed that the key factor is not the duration of study but the completion of the established volume of academic credits and the achievement of learning outcomes defined by the educational program.
"The implementation of three-year bachelor's programs is regulated by law. This format should be viewed not as a simple mechanical reduction of the educational program but as an opportunity for more flexible organization of the learning process — without compromising the quality of professional training. At the same time, the possibility of applying this format depends on the specifics of a particular field of study. In particular, programs requiring a larger volume of academic credits, mandatory practical training or compliance with special qualification requirements must be considered on an individual basis," Bektenov added.
According to him, a special approach is needed in fields such as medicine and veterinary science, the arts, and a number of disciplines in education, natural sciences, engineering and the humanities, where the formation of professional competencies requires deep and systematic theoretical and practical training.
Bektenov added that some higher education institutions have now introduced a trimester system of study in in-demand fields, including computer science, cybersecurity, big data analysis, software engineering, information systems and artificial intelligence, digital law, business analytics and marketing. More than 16,000 students are studying under this system.