D. Serikbayev EKTU Became a Center for International Dialogue on the Future of Engineering Education

East Kazakhstan Technical University named after D. Serikbayev hosted the CDIO Asian Regional Meeting 2026 – the Asian regional meeting of the Worldwide CDIO Initiative. An international event of this scale was held in Central Asia for the first time. The meeting was organized by EKTU with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The meeting brought together more than 50 representatives from universities and the expert community across 15 countries, including Singapore, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, India, Malaysia, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and other nations.

The main theme of the event was "Next Generation Engineering: A New Triad of Academia, Industry, and Artificial Intelligence." The program included plenary sessions, expert panels, roundtable discussions, and practical workshops. Participants discussed updating engineering educational programs, advancing project-based and practice-oriented learning, enhancing university-industry collaboration, co-designing educational programs with industrial partners, and ensuring the responsible application of artificial intelligence in engineering training.

Opening the international meeting, Saule Rakhmetullina, Chairman of the Board – Rector of D. Serikbayev EKTU, emphasized:

"We must maintain a strong foundational base while simultaneously creating opportunities for students to apply their knowledge in a real engineering environment. Therefore, the interaction between academia, industry, and artificial intelligence is becoming particularly significant today. Engineering education must empower students to conceive, design, implement, and operate real-world products, processes, and systems."

A key focus of the meeting was the discussion of Kazakhstan's national model of engineering education. The international CDIO framework involves training specialists by covering the full lifecycle of an engineering product: from concept generation and design to implementation and operation. This approach integrates fundamental knowledge, professional competencies, project work, and the solution of real industrial challenges.

Juha Kontio, Co-Director of the Worldwide CDIO Initiative and Vice Rector at Turku University of Applied Sciences, spoke about the development of the initiative and modern approaches to engineering education. He paid special attention to the transformation of engineering education and the meaningful integration of artificial intelligence into the learning process.

The practical format of the regional meeting allowed representatives from engineering schools worldwide to exchange experiences, discuss specific educational solutions, and identify opportunities for further international cooperation.

D. Serikbayev EKTU is the only university in Kazakhstan holding the status of a full member of the Worldwide CDIO Initiative.

The meeting served as an international platform to address how engineering training should adapt to new technological conditions. The "university – industry – artificial intelligence" synergy creates new approaches to engineering education and the preparation of specialists capable of applying modern technologies to solve real manufacturing challenges.