Autobiography

Gulnar Nassimova is a professor with 31 years of academic and teaching experience. In 1994, she graduated from Al-Farabi Kazakh National University with a degree in Political Science. From 1994 to 2010, she worked at the Department of Political Science as an assistant, senior lecturer, associate professor, and professor. From October 2010 to August 2011, she served as Acting Head of the Academic and Methodological Office and Scientific Secretary of the Republican Educational and Methodological Council (RUMS) of Al-Farabi KazNU. She is currently the Head of the Department of Political Science and Political Technologies at the Faculty of Philosophy and Political Science. Under her leadership, the department’s academic and educational directions have expanded, and new graduate and doctoral programs in Conflictology have been launched. She is the recipient of the state grant “Best University Teacher” (2007) and the state scientific scholarship (2023). Over the years, she has led several research groups funded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, including: – “Protest Potential in Kazakhstan: Characteristics, Factors, and Trends” (2020–2022), – “Educational Migration from Kazakhstan: Trends, Factors, and Socio- Political Consequences” (2018–2020), – “Formation of the Political Culture of Kazakhstani Student Youth as a Strategic Resource of the Country” (2015–2017), – “Socio-Political Stability as the Foundation for a New Stage of Kazakhstan’s Development” (2012–2014). She is currently the Principal Investigator of the project “Political Participation in Kazakhstan: Dynamics and Opportunities for Expansion.” Together with scholars from Dublin City University, she participates in two Horizon Europe projects: – CARSI — Caucasus and Central Asia Research Social Innovation: Development Assistance, Innovation and Societal Transformation, – ORCA — Open(ing) Research in Central Asia: consolidating a culture of research ethics, data management, and open science in Eurasia and beyond.