Study: Uzbekistan Higher Education Averages 30 Students Per Teacher

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — As of June 2026, a total of 1,605,028 students are enrolled in higher education institutions in Uzbekistan, alongside a faculty workforce numbering 61,088 people. On average across the republic, there are 30.3 students for every full-time teacher, according to data from an analytical report on the student-to-teacher ratio published by the National Quality Assurance Agency for Education (NQAAE).

The most severe workload was recorded in the non-state sector. Private universities concentrate 38.3 percent of all students in the country while possessing only 17.3 percent of the total number of teachers. As a result, the ratio in non-state higher education institutions stands at 55.3 students per teacher—nearly three times higher than in state institutions, where the figure is 19.1. In foreign branches, the ratio stands at 32.9 students per teacher.

An analysis by university profile revealed even more noticeable discrepancies. In social sciences and humanities institutions, which account for 70.6 percent of the country's entire student body, there are an average of 44.3 students per teacher. This exceeds the established standard of 16 people by 2.8 times.

In applied universities, the actual workload exceeds the norm by 69.6 percent, and in medical universities by 41.7 percent. The most balanced picture is observed in creative and sports educational institutions, with 8.4 students per teacher, as well as in universities included in the global TOP-1000 ranking, which average 16.4 students, practically conforming to the standards.

Among the three national universities represented in international rankings, the ratios are 15.8 at the National University of Uzbekistan named after Mirzo Ulugbek, 16.1 at the Tashkent State Technical University named after Islam Karimov, and 17.3 at the "TIIAME" National Research University.

Broken down by region, the variance in indicators reaches 33.1 students. The highest teacher workloads were noted in the Kashkadarya region with 50.4 students per person, the Tashkent region at 42.9, the Bukhara region at 39.6, and the city of Tashkent at 37.7. The lowest figures were recorded in Karakalpakstan with 17.3 students, the Samarkand region at 20.4, and the Jizzakh region at 20.8.

Among individual higher education institutions, teachers at several private social sciences and humanities institutions carry the heaviest workloads. At the Tashkent Economic-Pedagogical University, there are 236.6 students for every teacher.

The Management Development Institute of Singapore at 140.1, the International School of Finance and Technology at 133.8, and a number of other non-state universities also significantly exceed the national average, showing rates of over 100 students per teacher. Aside from creative specialties, the lowest workloads are characteristic of several branches of Russian technical universities.

The agency also identified anomalous values: according to data from the "Single National Labor System," three institutions—the Tashkent program centers of Webster University, the Riga Nordic University, and the branch of VGIK—do not have any full-time teachers listed at their primary place of employment at all.

An additional six institutions have only one or two full-time teachers despite having hundreds of students. The agency points out that engaging pedagogical workers without the proper formalization of labor relations contradicts current legislation.

Higher education institutions with anomalous indicators will be subjected to an additional review for compliance with licensing requirements. In certain cases, the conduct of an unscheduled comprehensive accreditation is not ruled out.