Engaging with Turkmenistan in the sphere of education and culture to promote UK-Turkmen bilateral relations is of high importance for the British Embassy in Turkmenistan. Educational and cultural activities are designed to contribute to education reform in Turkmenistan and expand cultural links between the people of both countries.

Some of the services that the Embassy offers in the education sphere are:

• The Chevening Scholarship and the jointly funded OSI/Chevening/University of Essex scholarship programmes are highly popular in Turkmenistan. Every year several Turkmen citizens get an opportunity of pursuing graduate study at world renowned UK universities.
• Administration of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) gives an opportunity to those studying the English language to measure their ability to communicate in English. It is meant for people who intend to study or work where English is the language of communication.
• The Embassy is also open for those who seek advice on educational opportunities in the UK’s educational institutions as well as to attend English language courses in the UK. The Embassy has a library with a variety of English Learning materials, which anyone can borrow free of charge. A range of free materials on education, culture, environment in Britain is also available for the public.

The Embassy also takes part in educational exhibitions, fairs and conferences to publicise its services and resources, including educational opportunities in the UK. The Embassy actively assists the British Council and a number of UK educational institutions in carrying out their projects and developing co-operation in Turkmenistan.

Another type of sharing information with the public is engagement in an outreach event called the Road Show. This travelling exhibition takes place in all the main cities and some of the smaller towns in Turkmenistan annually. This is when people living outside the capital have a chance to speak to the Embassy staff face to face and learn about the UK policies, culture and values.

In previous years, the Embassy has sponsored visits by British singers, musicians and artists to Turkmenistan. These tours have brought closer the ancient and diverse culture of the British people to their Turkmen friends.

Joint European concerts and festivals are also very popular in Turkmenistan. The British Embassy has always been an active facilitator of these events, the most popular of which is a concert of classical music, annually organised by European embassies in Ashgabat on the occasion of Europe Day, marked on 9 May.