Uzbekistan to introduce graduate quality index to assess higher education institutions

Educational institutions in Uzbekistan now have the opportunity to pay for state accreditation significantly cheaper, provided that a number of established requirements are met. According to the innovation, instead of the full amount of the basic fee, only 25% can be paid.

This change applies to both comprehensive and special state accreditation. The Ministry of Justice has officially registered amendments to the regulations governing the amounts and procedure for calculating these fees for educational organizations.

The new rules stipulate that when an educational institution applies, the basic accreditation fee can be reduced to one-fourth of the initially established amount. This benefit is provided if the institution meets at least one of the five listed criteria.

Conditions for receiving reduced fees

The first condition is compliance with state assignments. Accreditation is required if it is necessary for implementing tasks outlined in the documents of the President of Uzbekistan, the Head of the Presidential Administration, or the Cabinet of Ministers.

The second condition relates to having international accreditation: if at least half of the active educational programs have already been accredited by organizations included in the registry recognized in Uzbekistan, this allows for a reduction in the scope of additional evaluation work.

The third option is conducting remote accreditation, which is possible for special state accreditation. The benefit is also available if the organization simultaneously applies for special state accreditation for ten or more educational programs.

The last condition concerns the assessment of similar programs: if related programs do not require re-verification of the general material and technical base, personnel resources, and other infrastructure during accreditation, the scope of work is reduced.

It should be noted that a unified Ministry of Education and Science operates in Uzbekistan, which is responsible for administering the activities of all types of educational institutions—from kindergartens and schools to colleges and universities. This department also establishes standards for educational activities and handles licensing and accreditation.

The Ministry of Education and Science of Uzbekistan plans to launch a call center designed to receive appeals, suggestions, and complaints regarding the quality of education. The operation of this center will be outsourced, and incoming appeals are scheduled to be promptly verified and forwarded to the relevant structures.

In addition to launching the call center, the ministry will introduce a new feedback system aimed at both the population and workers in the field of education and science. This system will allow for the collection and analysis of data on the availability and level of educational services, as well as the identification of existing problems.

To strengthen public control, a Public Council on Education Issues will be established, which will function under the minister. This council will include representatives of parents, students, university students, teachers, and employers, ensuring that not only specialized experts but also direct consumers of educational services participate in discussions on educational matters.

The structure of the ministry itself will also undergo changes. The department's collegium will consist of fifteen people, including the minister, his deputies, heads of agencies under the ministry, rectors of leading universities, as well as scientists and educators.

Until February 1, 2027, the minister will have the option, in exceptional cases, to hire employees into the central apparatus of the department through personal interviews.

In parallel, a special working group is being formed under the Presidential Administration. Its task is to develop a national concept for the strategy of human capital development and lifelong learning, which will be chaired on a voluntary basis by entrepreneur Zafar Khashimov.

New structures will also appear under the ministry: the Human Capital Development Fund, as well as the Center for Strategic Research and Evaluation in Education and Science. The activities of the Agency for Knowledge and Qualification Assessment will be organized. Meanwhile, the Center for Educational Development under the Ministry of Preschool and School Education will cease its operations.

An initiative is being considered in Uzbekistan to change the rules of the national rating of higher education institutions, which involves linking financial revenues to state universities with the results of this rating. According to the draft order, universities will be divided into three tiers depending on the number of points scored. This new system could potentially take effect from January 1, 2027.

The proposed distribution structure includes assigning 20% of universities with the best performance to the first category, the next 40% to the second, and the remaining 40% to the third. The amount of funds allocated to a university will directly depend on its category. For institutions that have financial independence, the payment calculation will be based on the amount the state allocates per student under the state order or grant.

For other state universities, the size of the funding will be determined based on the volume of budget funds intended to cover their expenses. After the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Innovation publishes the rating results, it is obliged to transfer the corresponding funds to the treasury accounts of the universities within fifteen working days, while the universities retain the right to independently dispose of the received money.

Changes to evaluation criteria

The draft also provides for modifying the criteria for evaluating universities. Instead of using three separate metrics—graduate employment rate, job search duration, and average income—the introduction of a unified graduate quality index is planned. This index will be assessed in a range of 20 to 40 points, depending on the university's category.

Furthermore, it is proposed to adjust the deadlines for providing data for participation in the rating: the data submission date is moved from February 1st to June 1st. Universities will have to upload information for the past reporting period to a specialized platform, after which the agency will verify the data and calculate the final scores.

For educational institutions in Uzbekistan that are included in the top thousand international rankings, such as THE, QS, and ARWU, the creation of a separate national rating is provided for. In this case, results from narrow subject areas will not be taken into account. Universities that have been operating for at least three years and have already graduated undergraduates can participate in the national rating. Starting in 2027, the calculation of faculty staff numbers will be based on the sum of full-time equivalents.

These changes are currently in the stage of a draft order from the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Education and will only come into force after official approval and publication of this document. It was previously reported that the development of a Graduate Quality Index for universities in Uzbekistan was underway, which should consider parameters such as employment level, employment stability, income level, and assigned job category.