Number of vocational graduates in Kazakhstan rises 26%
Kazakhstan has been steadily increasing the number of state-funded places in technical and vocational education, Qazinform News Agency quotes Enlightenment Minister Zhuldyz Suleimenova as saying.
According to the minister, the state educational order stood at 344,900 places in the 2023-2024 academic year. Vocational qualifications include such professions as welders, electricians, mechanics, turners, machine operators, installers, and industrial equipment operators, among others.
“In the 2024-2025 academic year, the number of state-funded places increased to 374,300, up by 29,400. In the 2025-2026 academic year, it reached 393,300, a further increase of 19,000 places,” Suleimenova said at a Government's meeting.
Overall, the number of state-funded places increased by 48,400, or 14%, over the three-year period.
“The number of graduates is also increasing each year, rising from 141,300 in the 2023-2024 academic year to 169,200 in 2025-2026, an increase of 19.8%,” the minister added.
The strongest growth was recorded among those earning vocational qualifications, whose number rose from 47,500 to 60,100. The number of graduates in mid-level specialist programs increased from 88,200 to 103,200, while applied bachelor’s programs saw a more modest rise from 5,600 to 5,900.
Earlier, the minister said Kazakhstan’s funding for colleges would increase to 75 billion tenge in 2027.
