Dr. Kairat Kurakbayev is the Research Institute’s Director at Nazarbayev University Graduate School of Education. Prior to joining the Graduate School of Education, Dr. Kurakbayev served as an Acting Director of the Department for Strategic Planning and Deputy Director of the Department for International Cooperation at Gumilyov Eurasian National University. His professional experience includes working as an English school teacher and a teacher educator on the initial teacher education programmes. Dr. Kurakbayev has been awarded the British Council and American Councils academic scholarships. He is a graduate of the University of Exeter and holds a master’s degree in education. Kairat’s research interests focus on comparative education, globalisation and educational policy, school reforms and adaptability of educational innovation. He is a principal investigator of the International Project “Development of Secondary Education Curriculum of Kazakhstan in the Context of Contemporary Reforms” in collaboration with the University of Cambridge Faculty of Education. Kairat Kurakbayev is a member of the Institutional Research Ethics Committee at Nazarbayev University. Currently Kairat is actively involved in developing Kazakhstan Education Research Association and represents the Association at the Executive Council of the European Educational Research Association (EERA).