AIU Ranks Ninth Among One Hundred and Sixteen Higher Education Institutions in Kazakhstan by Number of State Grant Recipients

Astana International University has entered the nation’s top nine universities following the results of the 2026 national state grant competition.

This year’s competition was marked by record-high levels of rivalry:

• Fewer grants available: The total number of undergraduate grant places in Kazakhstan decreased by 1,713, settling at 75,371 compared to 77,084 the previous year.
• Increased competition: The number of students who passed the Unified National Testing (UNT) grew by 23,000—from 210,000 to 233,000 applicants. This pushed the average competition rate up from 2.7 to 3.1 applicants per grant place.
• Higher entry standards at AIU: The university intentionally raised its UNT threshold score by 5 to 30 points across 12 educational program groups.

Despite these challenging conditions and higher criteria, 2,119 state grant holders chose Astana International University, exceeding last year’s figure of 2,017 students.

Out of 116 higher education institutions in Kazakhstan, AIU secured 9th place this year. The strong presence of a young university among the established leaders of higher education is a direct result of the entire AIU team's hard work and the strongest proof of high trust from applicants and their parents.

Congratulations to the faculty, staff, and new students of Astana International University on this outstanding victory!