Abstract:
The importance of employability skills has been discussed in Kazakhstan in one
form or another. An important direction of current reforms in higher education in Kazakhstan is the
relevance of the graduate employability skills to the needs of the labor market. One of the issues in this
regard is the lack of collaboration between the industry and universities. Therefore, it becomes crucial
to build this collaboration in an attempt to establish that match between what employers demand and
what universities teach. This study will explore the expectations of Nazarbayev University graduates"
employability skills from the perspectives of employers, NU students, NU administration and faculty. It
is important to consider the perspectives of these three stakeholders, as their cooperation is essential to
this process of bridging the gap between the labor market demand and graduates" preparedness to meet
these demands. The study will also analyze the understanding of the concept of employability in a longterm
career perspective.