There is a world of difference between reading about science in a textbook and conducting a research project in a real university lab. This hands-on experience is exactly what participants gained at the NU Summer Camp, hosted at Nazarbayev University for the first time this year.
The summer school brought together 212 high schoolers from far beyond the capital. While students from Almaty and Astana were predictably active, they were joined by peers from every corner of Kazakhstan. The NU labs welcomed participants from the west (Aktobe, Atyrau, Aktau, Uralsk), north (Petropavlovsk, Kokshetau), south, and east of the country. Moreover, the program had an international appeal, attracting students who traveled specifically for the camp from Russia, Uzbekistan, and China.
The NU Summer Camp is a 10-day full-immersion program into the university environment for 14- to 18-year-olds. Participants chose one of five tracks — Inside Science, Human Lab, Maker Lab, CyberMind, or Success Track — and learned to operate like real researchers, engineers, and medical professionals. Beyond the lab sessions, the itinerary included a field trip to Borovoe.
The culmination of each cohort was the project defense day. Inside Science participants showcased the results of their mini-research projects: some analyzed substance compositions using spectroscopy, while others performed DNA electrophoresis. In the Human Lab, students presented customized training plans based on heart rate, muscle activity, and biomechanics data that they had collected themselves over the course of the program. Maker Lab teams competed to see whose wooden-stick bridges could withstand the heaviest loads, while CyberMind participants demonstrated robots they had built and programmed from scratch (with the winning team taking home a prize). For the Success Track, the final output wasn’t a traditional scientific project, but rather a complete, ready-to-submit university application package — an essay, a CV, and a motivational letter — that the students had been perfecting throughout the camp.
The transformation that took place over those 10 days was immediately apparent to the parents. “After the camp, my child is noticeably more motivated to study. As parents, we see these changes without needing them spelled out,” one mother wrote. Another added: “They were so engrossed in the process that they didn’t even have a minute to text or call home. That can only mean one thing — they were absolutely fascinated.”
The students themselves noted that the biggest surprise wasn’t the complexity of the material, but the chance to actually get their hands dirty. “The most valuable part was working in a real lab and getting genuine research experience. It sparked a sincere interest in science for me,” one participant shared.
At the end of the program, every participant received an NU certificate and the opportunity to request a letter of recommendation — for many, this serves as another solid stepping stone toward university admission.
