After completing secondary education, students may enrol in higher education institutes (HEIs), universities or specialized colleges (IBE 2007). There are four levels of higher education in Kazakhstan: Bachelor's degree (typically 4 years long); Specialist degree (typically a 5 years long);and Master's degree (typically 2 years long); Doctoral degree (typically 5 years long) (Javoronkova 2006). In general, access to HEIs has improved and previous concerns about quality assessment have been somewhat addressed.

TVET programmes are divided into two levels: primary (grades 10 and 11) and secondary. Students can enrol in primary level vocational schools after completing three years of secondary education (IBE 2007). These schools are designed to train students in a skilled profession. Lyceums and colleges provide secondary level vocational education, as well as general secondary academic schooling (Javoronkvoa 2006). In 2010, 882 TVET institutions were functioning in the country; 168 of these are located in the rural areas (Massimov n.d.). The Kazakh government has made particular efforts to improve the quality and marketability of its TVET programmes. 

Access to higher education in Kazakhstan has improved substantially in the last decade. Gross enrolment ratios have risen from 28% in 2000 to 41% in 2010 (UIS n.d.). As of October 2010, 148 HEIs (9 national, 32 public, 13 non-civil, 92 private and 1 international Nazarbayev University) were functioning in the country (Zhakenov 2002). HEIs in Kazakhstan are not free, although a certain number of bursary spots are allocated to the best and brightest students in the country. Presently, the number of students who receive government grants is less than 20%. Consequently, the share of private payments is increasing and currently made up over 85% of total revenues for HEIs in 2010. To improve access to higher education for disadvantaged groups of the population, quotas have been established for awarding public education grants to rural students for priority social and economic disciplines. Kazakh ethnic minorities, who are not citizens of Kazakhstan, disabled children, orphans and children without parental support also benefit from this policy (European Commission 2010).

Wider layers of the Kazakh population now have access to TVET programmes thanks to newly opened training establishments and government aid to marginalized students. In 2010, 882 technical and vocational education institutions were functioning in the country. The 168 TVET schools located in rural areas covered every district and specialised technical schools were present in every province of Kazakhstan (ETF 2007). The MoES is in the process of creating 4 regional centres for TVET and staff training. One of the centres started operating in 2010 with 750 students (BESA 2010). In order to increase access of students from less-privileged families to TVET programmes social aid has been considerably increased (ETF 2007). In 2010, 36.3% of TVET students received state educational grants (Massimov n.d.).

During recent years, considerable efforts have been made to ensure the quality of HEIs and the educational services provided by these establishments. The MoES has established a number of government agencies and government-based committees to monitor and improve the quality of the higher education system. The National System for Education Quality Assessment (NSEQA) was created in 2010 with the purpose to conduct the overall assessment of education at all levels. Several Accreditation Centres are also involved in this process. Currently, the move from quality control towards quality assurance is gaining strength. A comprehensive legal framework regulates the process of external assessment. It includes: Rules on licensing education activity approved by Government Decree, (2000); Regulation on state attestation of education institutions – Government Decree (1999); Rules on state accreditation of education institutions – Government Decree (2001) (European Commission 2010). In the past 5 years significant changes have been made to the quality and structure of the HEI system. For instance, ICT and communications courses have been included in curricula; 15 new laboratories and been added; and the three step system of Bachelor, Masters and PhD degrees was implemented (MoES 2011b). In 2005, 29% of teachers in HEIs held PhD degrees. Also, for the 2004-05 school year, the student - teacher ratio in public institutions was at 10:3 (OECD/World Bank 2007).

The Government of Kazakhstan has made important strides improving the quality of TVET services. In 2005, the National Assessment and Qualification Centre was established to independently assess students. This has consequently resulted in the development and adoption of national vocational education standards. The MoES also established several target professions to orient TVET curriculums and programmes. These include: the development of tourism; oil and gas sector; mechanical engineering; food and textile industries; transport-logistical services; and metallurgy and construction materials. About 18 thousand teachers of the vocational and technical education institutions were re-trained in between 2007 and 2010 through cooperation with enterprises (ETF 2007). In addition, 116 foreign language teachers were attracted to work in TVET institutions (Massimov n.d.). 

Universities and other HEIs can define their own curriculum within the framework of national education standards (IBE 2007). Universities are usually headed by a Rector, appointed by the President of Kazakhstan, who approves all decisions including those regarding curriculum, personnel, and admission (Javoronkova 2006). The Academic Council, headed by the Rector, is the highest administrative and managerial body of the university. The Central Managerial (Monitoring) Body for Higher Education is responsible for the assessment and certification of universities. This board also evaluates national standards for higher education including the basic content of educational programmes, maximum academic load for students, requirements for professional training of specialists, general requirements for admission to universities, and provisions for future employment of university graduates (IBE 2007).

The organization of the educational process in TVET schools and colleges is the responsibility of the Academic Board of each institution. National standards for TVET programmes are developed by collegiate associations and approved by the Central Managerial (Monitoring) Body for Higher Education (IBE 2007). Taking into consideration the recommendations of international experts, a list of occupations and specializations of TVET education was developed and approved by the MoES jointly with the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection. This has allowed 32 memos to be signed between the MoES and important Kazakh business such as KazMunaiGaz, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, Kazakhmys, Kazengineering, Kazpost, and others in 2007-2010 (Massimov n.d.).

The government of the Republic of Kazakhstan is seeking to reform its higher education sector and bring it in line with the Bologna Process. In order to achieve this objective the Concept of Education Development in the Republic of Kazakhstan up to 2015 and the State Programme of Development of Education in the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2005-10 have outlined the following goals: improve HEI management by increasing public, and not state, control; training professional staff; adopting a credit system; and providing greater budgetary transparency (UNESCO 2008). These initiatives will require an increase in the allocation of funds to the higher education sector. However so far, no extra funding has been made available.

The State Reform Plan for Vocational Education 2008–12 seeks to improve the infrastructure and content of the TVET sector by 2012 (BESA 2010). The plan placed a particular emphasis on skill development (TVET UK n.d.). The Ministry of Labour focuses particularly on the provision of TVET courses in carpentry, welding and mechanics. The Ministry is currently developing a national skill-base in these trades with the goal to become a labour supplier of these skills at a regional level (BESA 2010). The State Programme of Education Development (2005-10) provided over 6.7 million USD to strengthen the technical infrastructure of TVET schools and lyceums.