The NU SOM Psychiatry residency program is a 3-year program designed to provide medical doctors with fundamental training in general psychiatry to become Psychiatrists who are able to work in hospital or outpatient settings.

The Program will provide the residents with the principal competencies and will enable them to practice Psychiatry in the different clinical state-of-the-art facilities under close supervision of academic faculty, and prepare them to seek advanced training if desired. An important feature of this program is the opportunity to conduct clinical and translational research, and prepare them to pursue an academic career.

STEP 1. Create your personal account

Register on www.admissions.nu.edu.kz portal to create a Personal Account. Read the instructions about the application procedure given in your Personal account.

STEP 2. Complete your Application Form and attach the required documents

Fill out the application form and attach the required documents:

1. Scanned copy of a National ID card or passport;
2. Scanned copy of secondary school or higher education institution certificate (attestat/diploma) with final academic performance or certificate from the school (spravka) according to the sample in the personal account;
3. Motivation letter in English;
4. Valid copies of certificates. The results of standardized tests must be sent directly to the University through test administrators.

STEP 3. Pay an application fee

The application fee is paid online via your personal account with a bank card.

The application fee is 10 000 tenge and it is increased 3 times from the established amount when paid within the last two weeks before the first officially approved deadline and/or during the extension period for accepting applications for participation in the admission process. This amount is non-refundable.

Step 4. Finish the registration process

Finish the registration process by pressing the “Submit application” button. After submission applicants can’t change their applications.

Step 5. Upload IELTS/TOEFL certificates

Upload IELTS/TOEFL certificates in your personal account in the section "Upload IELTS/TOEFL" and fill up the required information about the certificate.

Further steps

Check your e-mail for notifications from the NU Admissions Department and your personal account to learn about your application status.

If you experience any difficulties with the registration or online application, please contact info_admissions@nu.edu.kz. Refer to your IIN and/or Applicant ID while sending us your requests.

Online application deadline for the residency program: February 12, 2024 - June 10, 2024.

All registered candidates can check the status of their application in the Personal account. Description of the status below is presented in the order of assignment to the candidate in the Personal account.

Application in processing. This is interim status, which means that the application is being processed. Admissions Committee will evaluate the application and inform the candidate on further steps/stages. Notification on final results will be sent to your email address.

Does not meet entry requirements. The status is assigned to the candidates who do not meet the minimum entry requirements. It is given after checking the application forms and the documents by the Admissions Department.

Disqualified. The status is assigned to candidates who are disqualified for gross violations of the conditions of the competition. For example, provided deliberately false information.

Rejected by Admissions Committee. At one of the competition stages, the Admissions Committee decided to reject the candidate’s application.

Transfer to another program. At the stage of an application screening the Admissions Committee has decided to recommend the candidate for consideration by the Admissions Committee of another program within the same School.

Pending. Candidate’s application is pending.

Waiting list. The Admissions Committee has finished reviewing the candidate’s application and made a decision to put you on a waiting list. Such candidates should expect notification from the University, as there is a possibility that if other candidates reject to study, they may be sent an invitation letter to study.

Recommended for admission to Zero Year of Graduate programs. The Admissions Committee has decided to recommend the candidate for the Zero Year of Graduate program. “Zero Year of Graduate programs” is a two-semester full-time program for candidates, who do not meet the language requirements for direct admission to Master’s programs, with intensive language, academic and research preparation for Master’s programs.

Recommended for admission to program. Admissions Committee has decided to recommend candidate for the program without going through the Zero Year of Graduate programs.

Recommended for conditional admission. The Admissions Committee has decided to recommend a candidate for the conditional admission with a requirement to fulfill the condition by the deadline specified in the notification.

Withdrawn. Candidate decided to withdraw from the competition.

Accepted Program admission offer. The status is assigned to candidates who received offer letter, signed Enrollment confirmation form and fulfilled all the сonditions of the University indicated in the offer letter.

Accepted Zero Year of Graduate programs admission offer. The status is assigned to candidates who received offer letter to Zero Year of Graduate program, signed Enrollment confirmation form and fulfilled all the сonditions of the University indicated in the offer letter.

Refused admission offer. The candidate was recommended for admission, but refused to study.

Refused in favor of another NU program. The status is applicable for those candidates, who applied for several graduate programs at NU. The status is assigned when the candidate chooses another program.

Deferred. The status is assigned to candidates who were accepted for the program, but decided to postpone their studies until the next year.

Did not submit the documents/Refused. The status assigned to candidates who did not provide originals of the documents by the stated deadline, which means that the candidate refuses to study at University.

Did not come to Orientation week/Refused. The status is assigned to candidates who accepted the offer letter, provided hard copies of documents, but did not participate in Orientation week. The vacant place, if available, can be offered to the candidates in the Waiting list.

Enrolled to program. The status is assigned to candidates who enrolled to the main program by the Decision of the Provost. Candidate officially became a student.

Enrolled to Zero Year of Graduate programs. The status is assigned to candidates who enrolled to the Zero Year of Graduate program by the Decision of the Provost. Candidate officially became a student.

PGY 1

The PGY1 year is split into 12 blocks of four weeks each. Residents in the Psychiatry Program spend three blocks in Family medicine, 2 blocks in Neurology, 4 blocks in the Inpatient psychiatry department, 2 blocks in the Substance use disorders Inpatient department and 1 block in Emergency Department. During rotations in Neurology, Inpatient Psychiatry and Substance use pathology, residents will also conduct 2 weeks of night float.

Teaching Curriculum. The formal weekly teaching curriculum during the psychiatry rotations in PGY1 provides a fundamental psychiatric knowledge base upon which subsequent training and education will build. The curriculum includes interactive teaching sessions, seminars, case conferences, journal clubs, grand rounds and workshops. These programs are directed and taught by faculty, and many renowned experts in their fields.

PGY 2

Junior residents will continue to build upon the clinical exposure they gained in PGY-1. The second year of residency training provides a core set of experiences covering the scope of inpatient psychiatry, including clinical rotations (1-2 months) in mood disorders, psychosis, child, geriatric, substance use disorders and psychosomatic psychiatry services. The weekly teaching sessions are closely integrated with these clinical experiences. In addition, residents begin psychotherapy training with patients and individual and group supervision by the middle of PGY2. At the end of the second year, residents can competently diagnose and treat a wide variety of common psychiatric disorders.

The formal teaching curriculum during PGY2 expands on the acquisition of fundamental psychiatric knowledge that began during PGY1 and is closely linked to the clinical experiences during this year. The curriculum includes lectures, seminars, case conferences, journal clubs, grand rounds and workshops.

PGY 3

The third year of residency training builds on the skills and knowledge acquired during the first and second years of residency through experiences in ambulatory psychiatry. Residents work in several general and speciality clinics that provide opportunities to learn about different models of care. These models include following patients independently, seeing patients concurrently with therapists, and collaborating closely with multidisciplinary treatment teams.

At the end of the third year, residents are able to competently diagnose and treat patients, and provide longitudinal care in a variety of outpatient settings. They also achieve increasing levels of competency in psychotherapy. The formal teaching curriculum during PGY3 provides a series of advanced topics, including courses on multiple modalities of psychotherapy, advanced psychopharmacology and evidence-based medicine.

Residents are required to complete two eleven-month clinics as well as six-month clinics in Geriatric, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Anxiety, Personality and Psychosomatic pathology respectively. In addition, residents choose, at a minimum, three six-month electives. An elective typically occurs once per week for a half-day per week. Residents continue psychotherapy training with an increasing caseload of patients and individual and group supervision.