Yerzhan Umirzakov

A Nazarbayev University graduate and mathematician from Aktobe, Yerzhan is 24. He will share whether this science can become a career, and how he managed to become one of the winners of the Yessenov Launch Pad grant Program for additional training. The Shakhmardan Yessenov Foundation has been providing this opportunity since 2022. You will also learn what knowledge the young professional has gained by completing the course he chose, and how he applies it now.

How I chose this speciality, and why mathematics?
At the age 18, choosing a future profession is difficult. I didn’t want to specialize too narrowly. It seemed more reasonable to start with something universal, technical, yet scientific, where I could find a niche that would be interesting to develop in and work in. So I ultimately chose mathematics because it is the foundation of all sciences and opens doors to diverse fields. With it, you can become a financier, researcher, teacher, or programmer. Ultimately, I chose the last option.

How the Yessenov Launch Pad competition was held.
I learned about the Program from a friend back in 2023. She motivated me to submit my application. The competition was held in 3 stages: initial selection based on documents, followed by an interview, and then business games facilitated by a psychologist. The competition was interesting, but I wouldn’t say it was challenging.

Why I won.
I believe the answer lies in having a clear goal. I knew exactly why I needed this Program, the victory, the grant and the funded course I intended to pursue. I clearly understood in what direction I want to develop: completing a Master’s degree and working in Machine Learning. It helped me answer all the interview questions perfectly and pass the stage of the business games.

Searching for a course.
With the support of the Yessenov Foundation grant, I wanted to take an introductory course on machine learning offered by the renowned educational platform karpov.courses. I read numerous expert reviews about the course, and all of them were positive. Having studied the training program of the course, I realized that it was exactly what I needed. The content covered mathematics, programming, and the fundamentals of machine learning.

How the course was conducted.
The classes began in early 2024 and lasted for several months. It included video lectures, meetings 3 times a week, homework assignments, of course, and a final project. The ML Start course (“Machine Learning Engineer”) by karpov.courses is designed to provide 7 months of theory and practice.

What I learned and how I use it.
I gained an understanding of how basic machine learning models work, how to work with data, visualize it, perform preprocessing, and build a pipeline, i.e. a sequence of data processing and model training steps combined into a unified workflow that can be launched as a complete system. Prior to the course I had some knowledge in this field but it was rather fragmented. Now all the pieces have come together into a cohesive puzzle. In addition, I improved my Python skills and learned to work with machine learning libraries such as Scikit-learn and TensorFlow, which is more advanced. These skills help me now during internships and in solving analytical tasks.

Current status and plans.
I am currently in my second year of a PhD program in Statistics at Boston University, and my research is directly related to machine learning. At the same time, I am actively applying for internships at major U.S. companies to gain practical experience and put the academic knowledge I’ve acquired into practice. My goal is to join a strong company working in the field of machine learning and artificial intelligence. I see promising prospects for me in this field, and I am positive that through hard work, I will succeed.

Advice for the Yessenov Foundation applicants.
The most important thing in the competition is to understand why you want to win, why you need a grant, what you will do with it, and how you will make use of this opportunity. In the case of the Yessenov Launch Pad, a grant Program for additional training, it would be excellent if you already have a specific course and goal in mind. The Foundation’s interviewers will immediately notice that from the very first minutes of your interview. So first and foremost, define your goal. Secondly, don’t be afraid to be honest and admit that you don’t know something. What matters more is demonstrating your willingness to learn. And never hesitate to try even if you are not 100 % confident, because opportunity only comes to those who try and submit their applications.