A seminar on Education to the benefit of prosperity and sustainable development of the SCO member states and Russia>, initiated by the Russian Federal Education Agency, come to an end in Beijing. The leading higher institutions of Russia, China, Uzbekistan, reps of the association of the near border higher educational establishments of Russia and Northeast Kazakhstan attended the seminar.

One of the organizers, deputy dean of the Faculty of History of the Moscow State University Aleksey Vlassov told in an exclusive interview with a Kazinform correspondent about problems and prospects for the development of integration educational projects in the SCO member states, issues of information support of the process for initiating a single educational space and elaboration of the legal framework for the cooperation of the SCO higher institutions.

The second seminar Russia plans to hold this year in Moscow to debate arrangements for the third workshop in December on the ground of the Almaty Al Farabi Kazakh National University and the Gumilyov National Eurasian University in Astana.

Will the SCO establish a University?

It will happen in the future. Currently, in accordance with a declaration adopted there it is necessary to form a single educational space de facto, not just to declare it. Vlassov specified this formulation as "there are a lot of image components but not too much has been done in fact. The parties agreed the education integration processes would contribute to accelerated modernization of higher education in the SCO countries.

The majority stated the most efficient instrument for integration would be the development of distance learning system, approval of legislative acts on mutual recognition of diplomas and qualifications (i.e. creation of a single market of students and lecturers’ movement) and establishment of the SCO University. The point at issue is to form the representation of this university on the ground of the leading Russian, Kazakhstani and Chinese higher institutions.

Following the results of the three seminars the education ministries of the six countries are supposed to receive information with certain proposals and recommendations which will lay foundation for their own projects.

Aleksey Vlassov pointed out the lack of financial, legal groundwork and staffing for setting up the single education space.

The Kazakhstan-Chinese agreement on mutual recognition of diplomas proves the bilateral ties are more efficient. And solution of the problem of mutual recognition of diplomas by the 6 states is restrained by overindulgence in bureaucratic aspect. Non-compliance of education standards existent between China, Russia and Central Asia is another obstacle to elaborating the legislative framework.

Kazakhstan students keep on choosing the West...

More and more Kazakhstan students choose English as a basic language and an instrument of their future career promotion. The number of Kazakhstan’s students picking out the Russian higher institutions keeps on declining through Bolashak program comparing to the number of students submitting their applications to the western universities.

Can the students transfer from the Kazakhstan-based institutions to the Russian ones?

Certainly they have such an opportunity. Kazakhstan has signed agreements with Russia and Belarus, but it is crucial to observe certain conditions defined by the receiving higher institutions. For example, a Kazakhstani student willing to transfer to a Russian educational establishment should pay for the left years of study.

Russia’s attitude towards Kazakhstan’s transfer to Latin

Aleksey Vlassov considered, in principle, the position of the Kazakh Education and Science Ministry stated in the concept as well-grounded. The problem is that the issue of correlation of the Kazakh and Russian languages is delicate. Thereat Russian should remain as an instrument of interethnic communication.