OSCE Academy: building professional skills for Central Asia

A relatively young institution - created in 2002 - the OSCE Academy in Bishkek promotes OSCE values in Central Asia through a practical, needs-focused education. It aims to help build a professional elite to contribute to the long-term development of Central Asia.

The Academy's Masters programme in political science, which is now accepting applications for admissions in August, is a competitive and demanding programme. Taught by an international and regional faculty, it has a strongly regional focus, with courses ranging from energy politics, political Islam, China, and nationalism to international development and conflict prevention.

In Central Asia, for Central Asia

To ensure the widest possible opportunity of access, education at the Academy is free and students are provided with a modest living allowance.

"Our students mainly come from the five Central Asian states - Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan," says Academy Director Maxim Ryabkov. "But we also have a number of students from other countries, including from Europe, Russia, China and Armenia among others. Since 2008 this 'out of region' group also includes Afghans."

The mix of nationalities gives students a truly international learning experience. Although their countries share a Soviet past, each has evolved differently in the post-Soviet period. This makes open debate among them particularly interesting and important, and the Academy's uniqueness is that it provides a platform for the free exchange of ideas. "They develop critical thinking not only in an academic sense," explains Ryabkov, "but there is also a change of perception, of the way they look at the world. They become more cosmopolitan."

Applying skills learned

The Academy aims to provide practical skills to its students, who are required to do a 1.5-2 month internship in partial fulfillment of their degree requirements. The top students are given the opportunity of an internship at an OSCE institution in Vienna or The Hague or at one of the Academy's partner institutions, where they can see some of the theory put into practice.

One such student was Nurlan Tussupov from Kazakhstan, who spent his internship at the South-Eastern Europe desk of the OSCE Secretariat's Policy Support Service in Vienna, working closely on Kosovo:

"At the end of each week I prepared a review on media coverage of the upcoming elections. In the reviews I noted activities of the Central Electoral Commission, activities of political parties and observation missions in Kosovo, and the issue of participation of Kosovo Serbs in the elections."

This would not have been possible without the solid support of the OSCE and the ultimate beneficiary of the project - the Central Asian states themselves.

"The OSCE Centre in Bishkek and the OSCE Institutions naturally have a close relationship with the Academy," says Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek Ambassador Andrew Tesoriere, who also serves as the elected Chairman of the Academy's Board of Trustees.

"The OSCE constantly looks to attune the Academy's activities to the specific needs and priorities of the Central Asian neighbourhood. Our staff are involved in teaching courses on the OSCE and several Academy graduates have gone on to work in the OSCE's Central Asian field presences. This year we are working with the Kyrgyz authorities to obtain official national accreditation for the Masters programme from the Ministry of Education as a further step in building recognition for the Academy as a centre of excellence," he explains.

Supported by the core OSCE budget, the Academy also receives extrabudgetary contributions from a number of OSCE countries, including the current OSCE Chair Kazakhstan. The government of Kyrgyzstan provides free of charge an excellent facility which houses the Academy.

Launching careers

A range of opportunities await students once they complete their studies. For example, the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) and the European Institute of the University of Geneva (IEUG) offer a scholarship to a recent Academy graduate.

The OSCE Academy seeks to assist the professional integration of its graduates. This starts with a series of public lectures and meetings at which students are acquainted with Ph.D. programmes and employment opportunities. More ambitiously, in 2010 the OSCE Academy has offered the foreign ministries of the Central Asian republics the launch of a Junior Professionals Program that will see a number of Academy graduates offered 6-month positions in the national administrations of their own countries.

A centre for research

As well as grooming students for public service careers, the Academy has built up a small but growing research component. This is based around an oral history research project aimed at filling gaps in Central Asian historical research and encouraging discussion on the recent past of the newly independent Central Asian states. The project began with Tajikistan, and now a second phase on Kyrgyzstan is underway. Both projects involve collaboration with leading academic institutions in Europe and North America.

"We have come a long way in a short time," says Ryabkov. "Since 2008 we have been organizing an annual seminar on Central Asian security with our partner institutions in Geneva and Oslo, and from 2010 Washington, which brings together policy experts and institutes in the region. The balance between a sound academic and theoretical component and training in professional skills is something that we strive for in the Academy." The conclusions of the seminars are published by the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, as Geneva Papers.

As the Academy matures, Ryabkov hopes that its facilities, including data collections, will serve as a resource centre for regional and international research institutions and scholars.

A growing alumni network

Many Academy graduates have gone on to work in their national public services, international organisations, or NGOs, while others have pursued further academic studies.

A recent survey of alumni showed that eighty percent intend to pursue a career in the region. "Building up a strong alumni network is one of the priorities of the Academy," explains Deputy Director Violetta Yan, herself a former student at the Academy. "Their experiences will help current students prepare for their future careers, and help the Academy make a sustained impact on Central Asia."