More Kazakhstani universities to close soon

    Five or six uncompetitive Kazakhstani universities will soon close, Kapital.kz reported on May 17, citing Rakhman Alshanov, president of the Association of Higher Education Institutions of Kazakhstan.
    Several law schools, including Adilet, had recently closed, Alshanov said, addressing a meeting of the Club for Political Solutions. Some under-subscribed universities have only five or six students per department, he added.
    When Bakytjan Jumagulov was rector of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University (2008-2010), he surveyed the country's educational scene and found the number of universities had shrunk from 139 to 134, Alshanov said. Another five or six will soon follow suit, Alshanov predicted.
    Failing universities can merge, turn into colleges or close, Alshanov said.
    In February, Education and Science Minister Bakytzhan Zhumagulov said the government would reduce the number of private universities from 66 to 30 by 2015, Central Asia Online said.