Career · Building and installation
Metal fabricator
Makes frames, doors, canopies and other strong structures out of metal, following drawings.
What a day looks like
A metal fabricator starts the day with a drawing: they look at the measurements, check the materials and plan what needs to be done. Then they measure and mark the pieces so that each part fits exactly in its place. The work happens in a workshop or on site, and it takes protective clothing and close attention. Sometimes a part is off by a couple of millimetres, and they have to find out why. By evening, the separate parts have become a frame you can touch and show to others. The fabricator sees their work holding up a roof, a gate or a staircase, and is proud of the result.
Try it yourself this week
30 minutes
Draw a sketch of a shelf bracket with measurements
- Find a shelf or stand at home and look at what holds it up. Don't unscrew anything.
- On squared paper, draw a side view and a top view of a bracket that could hold a shelf like this.
- Mark the measurements with arrows. To get them, measure the real shelf with a tape measure.
- Think it over and write down: which part takes the most load, and how would you make it stronger?
What you'll learn about yourself: Whether you find it interesting to be precise and to think about strength in advance.
30 minutes
Look closely at a mechanism and draw how it works
- Choose a simple thing at home: a door lock, a bike or a desk lamp. You don't need to take anything apart, just look.
- Draw the whole thing and label the main parts.
- Use arrows to show what passes movement to what: for example, where you press and what moves.
- Write down three questions you don't know the answer to, and find the answer to one of them.
What you'll learn about yourself: Whether you're drawn to finding out how things work inside, and whether you have the patience to get to the cause.
30 minutes
Measure your room and draw a plan with the furniture
- Take a tape measure and measure the walls of the room and the width of the window and door.
- Draw a plan to scale on squared paper: one square equals a length you choose in advance.
- Measure the furniture and add it to the plan at the same scale.
- Try moving the furniture around on paper and find the most comfortable layout.
What you'll learn about yourself: Whether you like working with exact measurements and picturing in your head how everything will fit.
What you can do next
Next 3 months
Sketch a bracket with measurements
Do the bracket task: look closely at a shelf, draw it from the side and from above, and label the measurements.
Learn to read simple drawings
Find simple technical drawings online or in your school technical drawing textbook, and work out what the lines and numbers mean.
Learn workshop safety rules
Find a guide on protective clothing and goggles and learn the main rules. When working with metal, safety comes first.
In six months
Look at the structures around you
Find a canopy, a fence or a staircase and draw what parts it is made of and how they are joined.
Talk to someone who does this job
Through people you know, and together with your parents, find a fabricator and ask them where to start and what the hardest part is.
Build a paper or cardboard model
Make a model of a simple frame out of cardboard and check what needs strengthening so it keeps its shape.
In a year
Find out where you can study
Together with your parents, find out what training programmes exist for this job and what you need to get in.
Ask to see a workshop
If people you know work with metal, ask if you can visit with your parents, just to watch and ask questions.
What it pays
No verified information is available in this section yet.
Where to study
Notes on sources are in Russian, as in the original source.
Colleges
You can apply after grade 9 or 11 — you get a profession faster than at university.
- Карагандинский высший политехнический колледж (opens in a new tab)
Karaganda
Сварочное дело · Сварщик
after grade 9 or 11
The UNT, if you apply to university
Required subjects: History of Kazakhstan, Reading Literacy, Mathematical Literacy. Profile subjects for this career: Mathematics + Physics.
Programme group: B064 Механика и металлообработка. Checked: September 2026.
Source: National Testing Centre list (opens in a new tab)How to get into college
College gets you a profession faster than university. You can apply after grade 9 or after grade 11.
- Colleges accept students both after grade 9 and after grade 11. After grade 9 you study longer — about 3 years 10 months; after grade 11, about 2 years 10 months. The exact length depends on the college and the specialty.
Source: kchk.edu.kz (opens in a new tab) - About 80% of students admitted to colleges in the 2024/25 school year study on a state order, which means in state-funded places (in 2023/24 it was about 70%). But each college and each specialty has its own number of state-funded places.
Source: inbusiness.kz (opens in a new tab) - There are also paid colleges. For example, training as a nurse at ADILMED costs 450,000 ₸ per year. Check the price and conditions on the college's website.
Source: adilmed.kz (opens in a new tab)
UNT: which subjects to take for university
The UNT (Unified National Testing) is Kazakhstan's national university entrance test. You need it to get into university after grade 11.
- The UNT 2026 has three compulsory subjects: History of Kazakhstan, Reading Literacy and Mathematical Literacy. On top of these, you take two profile subjects, chosen to match your specialty.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - In total, the test has 120 questions (maximum 140 points) and you get 4 hours. The format is the same as in 2025.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - Profile subjects depend on the group of specialties. For example: information technology — Mathematics and Computer Science; nursing and veterinary medicine — Biology and Chemistry; electrical engineering — Mathematics and Physics; law — World History and Fundamentals of Law. The full list is published by the National Testing Center.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - For creative specialties (for example, media and design), you take History of Kazakhstan and Reading Literacy through the UNT, and two creative exams at the university itself.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - Some universities have their own admission rules. Nazarbayev University, for example, requires a UNT score of at least 85, a GPA of 4.0 and English at IELTS 6.0 level.
Source: nu.edu.kz (opens in a new tab)
Courses and opportunities
Courses
This selection has no free courses with verified sources. Paid ones are listed for reference — check the price and terms on their website.
- Paidin personAlmatyusually for adults — check the ageKazQA Academy: Слесарь-электромонтажник (opens in a new tab)
KazQA Academy
Слесарь-электромонтажник: онлайн 60 000 ₸, очно 150 000 ₸.
Checked: September 2026
Source: kazka.academy (opens in a new tab)
Opportunities near this field
- Programmeenbek.kz job portal (opens in a new tab)
Министерство труда и социальной защиты РК
Who it's for: anyone looking for a job or an internship.
When: all year round.
The government job vacancy portal. It has a section for students and young specialists called «Жастарға» (For young people).
Checked: September 2026
Source: enbek.kz (opens in a new tab) - Programmeup to age 35Youth internship programme (opens in a new tab)
Министерство труда и социальной защиты РК
Who it's for: college and university graduates (not for school students).
When: ongoing, up to 12 months.
A paid internship for graduates (under the terms on enbek.kz, at least 30 MCI (monthly calculation index) per month). The rules have changed before, so check them on the day you apply.
Checked: September 2026
Source: enbek.kz (opens in a new tab) - Programmeup to age 35First job programme (opens in a new tab)
Министерство труда и социальной защиты РК
Who it's for: young specialists (not for school students).
When: subsidy for up to 18 months.
The state helps pay a young specialist's salary for up to 18 months. Check the conditions on enbek.kz.
Checked: September 2026
Source: enbek.kz (opens in a new tab) - ProgrammefreeAtlas of New Professions (opens in a new tab)
Минтруда РК и Центр развития трудовых ресурсов
Who it's for: everyone.
When: reference guide, always available.
Atlas of New Professions: which jobs will appear, change or disappear in the next 5–10 years. Free to read.
Checked: September 2026
Source: atlasbt.enbek.kz (opens in a new tab) - Youth centrefreeShymkentages 16–35UNICEF Youth Hub in Shymkent (opens in a new tab)
ЮНИСЕФ Казахстан
Who it's for: school students aged 16+, college and university students, and young specialists.
When: all year round, opened on 20 November 2025.
A youth hub at the pedagogical university in Shymkent: skills development, social projects, volunteering.
Checked: September 2026
Source: unicef.org (opens in a new tab) - Youth centrefreeAstanaages 12–18TUMO Astana (opens in a new tab)
TUMO
Who it's for: teenagers aged 12–18.
When: all year round, opened in February 2026.
A free centre for teenagers with 11 fields, from coding and robotics to film, graphic design and 3D.
Checked: September 2026
Source: astana.tumo.kz (opens in a new tab)
Can you work before you turn 18?
Under Kazakhstan's Labour Code, teenagers can work, but with limits.
- Usually you can work from age 16. From 15 — if you are getting basic or general secondary education. From 14 — only in your free time outside school and only light work. If you are under 16, you need a signature from a parent or legal guardian.
Source: kodeksy-kz.com (opens in a new tab) - From 14 to 16 you can work no more than 24 hours a week; from 16 to 18, no more than 36 hours a week.
Source: kodeksy-kz.com (opens in a new tab) - Under-18s must not be given heavy or hazardous work, jobs with full financial liability, night work, overtime or business trips.
Source: mybuh.kz (opens in a new tab)
History of the career
No verified information is available in this section yet.
Well-known people in this field
No verified information is available in this section yet.