NU people. NU stories

          Almost nobody knew Kazakhstan several years ago. To many, it was another “…stan” country in the outskirts of the world. Not much has changed today - people with skin color, eye shape and pronunciation different from ours are rather gimmick than something common. Yet, the large cities, like Astana and Almaty, invite a number of foreigners, who come here in pursuit of beneficial occupations, novel experience or lifelong love. One of such places in Astana is Nazarbayev University. Since its establishment in 2010 the university has become the hub for many international faculty members who were not discouraged by urban legends about people living in yurts in the middle of nowhere. 

We see them every day, but do we really know them? Who are they? What attracted them to Kazakhstan? What are their impressions of Astana? What do they find most surprising? What do they enjoy most and least about being here? These people shared their stories with me and now I am sharing them with you.

Rebecca, 28, Canada, NU Library, 7 months in Kazakhstan

A lot of people ask me how I decided to come here. A friend of mine sent the information about the job post-in as a joke. This interested me right away because I didn’t know anything about the area. I did some research: the more I read, the more intrigued I was. It seemed very exciting with a lot of change happening, and it turned out to be true. I’m really glad I decided to come – it’s a great experience. Now I work as a subject librarian for SST and the Medical School.

The most surprising was probably the city and university looks. I wouldn’t say this building was a university seeing all our palm trees. Also, I was surprised by the absence of animals and insects outside the building. Now when I got used to that, dogs and birds surprise me when I travel back home.

My least favorite thing is how bureaucratic my job sometimes can be. The language procedures is another level beyond my understanding. My favorite thing is how earnest and ambitious the university is. Everyone here is taking a lot of initiative trying to make the best national university. People appreciate education more and take it more seriously. Also, the students are very polite and friendly compared to back home. 

Mwita, 32, Kenya, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2 years 7 months in Kazakhstan

I teach classes in Political Science. Essentially, I came here because this was a brand new school and I wanted to be a part of that process. Back in 2012, the only buildings that were on campus were this huge main building, one dormitory for students and faculty house. That was the school! It was very small in the beginning, but it rapidly developed into this huge campus.

When I first came here I was surprised by the city itself, by its tall shiny buildings, its well-organized and neat structure. The only city that is similar to Astana in this sense is probably Washington D.C. But the right bank was the normal city with random buildings, people, shops and dirt!

I really don’t like the winter, obviously. I love the idea of going outside, but in winter months that becomes impossible. What I like most about being at NU is the dedication the students have to learning. If you ask any professor who has taught here and also taught somewhere else in the U.S., that professor would say that the students here are bright, sharp and willing to learn.

Byron, ageless, USA, School of Medicine, 1 month in Kazakhstan   

I have always wanted to make a difference in people’s lives and wanted them to make a difference in my life, so I started going to places nobody was going to. Before coming here I have lived for a long time in about 25 different countries, including Caribbean countries, countries in Southeast Asia and Latin America, and many others. Now doors all over the world are open to me. My background is very diverse and ranges from English Literature to medical sciences, evidence-based medicine and epidemiology.

Kazakhstan was an absolutely unique, powerful opportunity of a lifetime, almost like a rebirth to me. I was invited to participate in the creation of a new medical school, completely different from the other places. Now this is a country that is adopting me and I am adopting it.

Astana is home now to me, welcome to my city! The thing that struck me about Astana and the Nazarbayev University is people. The students and local teachers here remind me both Asians and Europeans, they are like in-between, as if one of the parents was Asian and the other was European. Surprisingly, you look very different from Chinese. Physically, Kazakhs are much taller than most of the other Asians. Some of the women are as tall as me! Emotionally, Kazakhs are not very expressive. It is not very common for Kazakhs to show their reaction in public. 

Kazakhstan is one of the holy places of antiquity and pre-history in Central Asia. It is an early beginning of culture. What I like most about Kazakhstan is that here it feels like coming home. 

If you are interested in the process of interviewing and participant selection or have something to share about your own data collection process, feel free to write about that in the comment section below.