Emma Harden-Wolfson

Higher Education in Central Asia Blog (est. 2011)

  • Poor prospects for Uzbeks studying in Kyrgyzstan

    I’m reporting today on a EurasiaNet story about missed opportunities for Uzbeks studying and wishing to make a living in Kyrgyzstan. The full story is below, (c) EurasiaNet with the original available at http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67908. This is a problem created in the Soviet era when boundaries between republics were less relevant and the overarching ‘unity of the… Read more

  • Holiday viewing: early Soviet Central Asia posters

    This isn’t a news story but a visual offering from me to you for the holiday season. My MA thesis was on the relationship between art and the state in the early Soviet period in Russia. Continuing my interest in this theme, it’s a delight to share these wonderful and often rather radical designs with… Read more

  • Times are changing for university governance in Kazakhstan

    The Kazakh government has decided to take a big step towards greater independence for Kazakh universities by reforming the top layer of institutional governance. ‘Oversight councils’, also commonly known as Councils or Senates, will be responsible for hiring and firing Rectors (Vice Chancellors/CEOs) and have monitoring oversight for university finance  and strategy. (How those councils… Read more

  • Kazakhstan distances itself from Soviet past

    Here’s a beautiful photo reportage on the gradual disappearance of large-scale Soviet-era frescos and mosaics that used to be commonplace on the walls of buildings all over the Soviet Union. Entitled ‘The walls are crying’, the article recognises that the façades of public buildings were very consciously used in Soviet times as a way of… Read more

  • UK universities in Uzbekistan: what is the ‘right thing’ to do?

    Trying to catch up on reporting on Central Asian higher education, here’s an article from the UK’s The Guardian newspaper from October 2013 (thanks to David Wolfson for bringing it to my attention).  It’s on partnerships between UK universities and institutions in Uzbekistan. Full text here: UK universities move into Uzbekistan even as human rights fears grow… Read more

  • Education deficit in Tajikistan, part 4

    I had no idea that this story would keep running and running… but now Eurasia Net have got in on the act and published their own story about the higher education system in Tajikistan. Entitled ‘Tajikistan: Even the Government Won’t Hire College Graduates‘, Asel Kalybekova’s story focusses on two quality issues: 1. The perceived lack… Read more