Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Singapore

Current issues of higher education system discussed

On August 6, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting on organization of admission to higher education institutions this year and preparation for 2020/2021 academic year.

In recent years, as a result of changes in higher education, the confidence of youth and parents in this system has increased. The procedures for submitting entry documents have been completely switched to a remote form, which creates great convenience for the population.

This year, 162,364 undergraduate places and 10,425 master's places have been allocated for higher education in the country.

91 higher education institutions have accepted documents for admission to bachelor's degree from 1 million 484 thousand applicants, which is 39 percent more than in the last year. 10.6 people apply for one student place.

78 thousand 720 people applied for admission to master's program in 72 education institutions, which is 3 times more than in the last year. In general, the admission quotas have been tripled compared to 2016.

Coronavirus pandemic disrupted the established order of admission to higher education institutions among other things. Therefore, today it is necessary to determine when, where and how the entrance tests will be conducted and how the education process will be organized in 2020/2021 academic year. At today's meeting, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev outlined the range of issues on the agenda, taking into account the pandemic factor.

In particular, it was noted that testing should be conducted in places that allow ensuring the epidemiological safety of applicants and observers.

Taking into account that closed premises do not meet epidemiological requirements and do not have sufficient capacity to conduct exams in the optimal time frame while maintaining a social distance, it was instructed to organize tests in the central stadiums of Tashkent and regions. If the exams are held 2 times a day (at cool time of a day), the entire testing process can be completed in approximately 12-14 days.

Responsible ministries and agencies have been tasked with carefully preparing stadiums for testing and informing applicants about their location.

The Head of the state emphasized that it is necessary to determine examination time based on the conclusion of the Ministry of Health and Sanitary-Epidemiological Service on the epidemiological situation, to ensure the safety of people's health.

The State Commission for admission to educational institutions, khokimiyats, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the National Guard, the Ministry of Physical Culture and Sports, and the State Security Service will take all necessary measures to ensure the transparency of tests and prevent red tape of applicants.

The need for attracting talented professors and teachers to enrich the educational process with high-quality educational resources was noted.

It was determined that by August 25, the Ministry of Higher and Secondary Special Education will create digital methodological support for theoretical and practical classes, as well as training programs adapted to distance learning in all subjects, which are more than 7,2 thousand.

In at least 35 state universities, first-year education will be organized according to credit-module system.

“The experience of developed countries shows that it is difficult to achieve scientific and technological success without adapting educational institutions to the requirements of time”, said President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

In this regard, this year at least 5 higher education institutions in Uzbekistan will undergo the transformation process in cooperation with prestigious foreign universities. At the same time, the structure and technologies of training will be improved, as a result, higher education institutions will be transformed into scientific institutions that can provide modern education and introduce innovations.

Following the meeting, the Head of the state personally spoke with rectors of higher education institutions of national significance, gave specific instructions to responsible officials for solving voiced problems and proposals.

UzA