Kazakhstan addresses school enrollment rejections, cites resolved technical issues

Kazakhstan is working to resolve issues that led to rejections of first-grade enrollment applications, with the Ministry of Education assuring that technical problems have been fixed. Shynar Akparova, First Vice Minister of Education, acknowledged initial "technical glitches" and problems with "improperly submitted documents" that affected the start of the admissions campaign. She confirmed that these issues are now resolved and that parents can continue submitting applications until August 31.

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Initially, there were technical glitches, including rejections caused by improperly submitted documents. However, everything has now been resolved.

While parents have the right to choose a school, Akparova explained that enrollment is also dependent on the school's capacity and adherence to sanitary and epidemiological requirements. "If an educational organization's design capacity does not allow for more students, the school cannot enroll the child," she stated. However, the ministry emphasized that no child will be left without a school placement. If a preferred school is full, students will be enrolled in a nearby school, with consideration given to parental preferences.

The country faces a significant student seat deficit, currently standing at 245,000. This figure is a substantial improvement from approximately 1 million seats short in 2020. Over the past five years, Kazakhstan has built 1,120 schools, including 217 new-format schools under the "Keleshek Mektepteri" national project. To further address the shortage, the state is also utilizing private schools, with 749 private institutions receiving about 118 billion tenge this year for educational orders.

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If an educational organization's design capacity does not allow for more students, the school cannot enroll the child because there are specific sanitary and epidemiological requirements that must be observed.

Additionally, the number of schools operating on a three-shift schedule has been significantly reduced. It has decreased fourfold in the last three to four years, with only 48 such schools remaining. More than half of these are located in the Almaty region, a situation officials attribute to the rapid growth of the Almaty metropolitan area. The Ministry of Education also previously announced the introduction of new subjects in Kazakhstani schools starting September 1, 2026.

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For comparison, there was a shortage of about 1 million seats in 2020. Over the past five years, 1,120 schools have been built across the country, including 217 new-format schools under the 'Keleshek Mektepteri' national project.