Chapter 12: Transition from Higher Education to Employment in Central Asia: Graduate Experiences in Post-Soviet Tajikistan

Higher education in the Soviet Union was tied to the needs of the economy and the labor market. Universities were linked to relevant ministries and sectors of the economy. Having a strong association with industry had a number of disadvantages for graduates, such as not often obtaining desirable jobs, and neither having much flexibility in changing jobs. However, the transition of graduates from university to employment was relatively smooth and served the purpose of the state. Upon graduation, students were guaranteedjobs within a sector related to their field for at least 2 years.

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the educational systems were decentralized at all levels within all former Soviet republics. With a few exceptions, universities were no longer tied to particular ministries and were provided with some measure of autonomy. Graduates gained freedom and flexibility in determining their selected career paths; however, flexibility and freedom came at the cost of uncertainty and challenges of securing employment within a (prolonged) transitioning labor market and economy. While these challenges were experienced by university graduates in most former Soviet republics, the experiences of graduates in Tajikistan, as presented in this chapter, suggest that these challenges were particularly difficult given a number of contextual factors.