Uzbekistan lets 2022/23 winter-intake master's students defend theses with a language certificate
Under a Higher Education Ministry commission decision, winter-intake master's students who could not defend their theses for lack of a foreign-language certificate may now do so on submitting a recognized certificate.
Uzbekistan will allow some master's students who were unable to defend their theses because they lacked a foreign-language certificate to proceed with their defense. The decision applies to students admitted to master's programs during the exceptional winter intake of the 2022/2023 academic year.
Who issued the decision
According to Taʼlim xabarlari, the relief was introduced by Decision No. 5 of 25 September 2026 of the commission under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation. Higher education institutions must organize the final state attestation — the master's thesis defense — for students who meet the stated requirements.
Which certificate is required
To defend, a student must submit a valid, officially recognized foreign-language certificate. The required level depends on the field: B2 for the humanities, biological sciences, mathematics and statistics, business, law, services, social and behavioral sciences, journalism and information-communication technologies; B1 for other fields, including culture and sport. The requirements are set within the framework of Presidential Decree PF-81 of 24 May 2024.
Background
The 2022/2023 master's winter intake took place in December 2022 – January 2023. Under the exceptional procedure at the time, applicants could apply regardless of the level of their language certificate; however, those enrolled were required to obtain the relevant national or international certificate during their studies, or they would not be admitted to the final state examination. That condition is what prevented some students from defending.
