Kazakhstan: Interview with Daulet Kuzhagaliyev

Daulet Kuzhagaliyev is an immigrant from Kazakhstan currently residing in Maryland. Kazakhstan, the world’s tenth-largest country by territory, has a population of approximately 19 million people (Central Intelligence Agency n.d.). Among them, 70 percent are ethnic Kazakhs, 16 percent are ethnic Russians, and 3 percent are ethnic Uzbeks (Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan 2021b). About 70 percent of the population of Kazakhstan identify as Muslim, while 17 percent identify as Christian (Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan 2021a). 

According to American Community Survey data from 2016-2020, there are an estimated 32,786 immigrants from Kazakhstan living in the United States (IPUMS USA 2020). The most recent data from the National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) indicates that the top three states of residence for immigrants from Kazakhstan are California, New York, and Washington; Maryland ranks 15th in this list (IPUMS NHGIS n.d.).

The primary occupation for immigrants from Kazakhstan in the United States is in the service sector (19%), which is similar to the trends among other immigrants in the country. Daulet recently transitioned from working in construction to becoming a long-haul truck driver. Employment in construction (8%) and transportation (7%) rank sixth and eighth among the 12 categories of occupations for immigrants from Kazakhstan. On January 19, 2024, Daulet shared his recent immigration experience and his family’s journey with the Institute for Immigration Research. 

Life Before Immigration

Daulet was born in the Jambyl Region (also Dzhambul) in southern Kazakhstan and had his first immigration experience when his parents moved to Russia and lived there until he turned seven.  

“I was born in Jambyl oblast, Taraz city. However, my parents did not live there for long. My father is from Russia, Volgograd region, and my mother is from Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. The story of how they met and got to know each other is a long one, but he was in the Army in the Soviet Union and the Soviet Union was vast.

I lived in Russia until I turned seven. I was going to the second grade when my parents decided to move from the Volgograd region to Kazakhstan, specifically to Almaty. I studied in School Number 65, then went to college at the Institute of Power Engineering and Communications majoring in electrical engineering and worked in my specialty.

In the last five to six years before I moved to the United States, I worked in Almaty for a company called Car City that sells car parts. This company is part of a large holding called Altyn Alma, and they even have restaurants under it. I worked as the chief electrical engineer in the procurement department.”

Visiting the United States for the First Time

Daulet decided to learn English for career progression and came to California for language courses.

“In 2013, I was working for an oil company called NeftPromService, and we were building a bitumen factory. I worked as an engineer in the power department, and if you knew English, your salary would double. So that made me consider studying English. My friend who studied abroad under the Bolashak program [a scholarship program funded by the Government of Kazakhstan to support its youth in study-abroad programs worldwide] suggested enrolling in language courses in the United States.

That is how I found myself in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, in 2013, attending four-months of English language courses. I actually had studied German at school and in university. After university, I even attended the Goethe Institute [language school] to maintain my German. I really liked the German language and had aspirations to go to Germany for professional development.

So I came to the United States without any thoughts about immigrating. I had a young family; my son was 3 years old and my daughter was 2 years old. When I saw the skyscrapers of Los Angeles, I told myself, ‘Okay, I am an urban guy and should not be surprised. I saw this scenery in American movies.’   

As I was progressing in my language courses, I started to get bored and wanted to see my kids. When my friend proposed to extend our stay for a bit to do some sighting, go to Niagara Falls and Rochester since we didn’t have a single good photo from our time, I didn’t agree. I was so exhausted, so I returned as soon as my courses ended. I was sure America would be just a good memory in my life.”

Returning to Kazakhstan After the First Visit

Daulet experienced culture shock upon returning to Kazakhstan after his initial visit to the United States. This experience prompted him to make a firm decision to move to the States.

“Well, I landed in Almaty and was heading to the house in a taxi, and the reality sunk in suddenly. Looking around, I started comparing lifestyles of the United States and Kazakhstan. Being an engineer, I first noticed stark differences in structures. I saw that edgings, utility poles, buses, and fire trucks were different. The streets were not that neat, and lawns were not that well-tended. I know the cities in the United States are not ideal, but still, there is a lot of contrast. I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if the rest of the countries were just like the United States.’ 

For some people these differences might not be that salient, but for me the order and neatness of American cities were a big deal. I got a bug then to live here.

In those early months after I returned, I found myself telling my sister and my parents how things were in America and how they were different from Kazakhstan. Then I called my friend with whom I went to the States; he was back to Kazakhstan by then, and we commiserated. He told me that he felt the same for six months after returning from his first experience living abroad for the Bolashak program, but his parents told him that he was in Kazakhstan now and should stop comparing. So he understood me well.”

Winning a Green Card

After trying their luck for several years, Daulet and his family were selected for the U.S. Government Diversity Immigrant Visa program (commonly known as the green card lottery). According to the U.S. State Department, during 2007-2021, an average of 27,687 (20,425 median) applications for the Diversity Visa program were received from Kazakhstan, and an average of 489 applicants (434 median) were selected annually from 2008 to 2023 (U.S. Department of State 2023). 

“Just like my friend, I started reintegrating into life in Kazakhstan, but constantly told my wife that we should go to America. I even suggested to come to the States temporarily and give it a try, test out living here. If we liked it, we would stay, and if we didn’t, we would return. So I played the green card lottery for seven years. My parents did not approve my desire to move to the United States. Honestly, had it not been for the lottery, I would have still been in Kazakhstan; I grew up there, had a decent career, why disrupt it all? But you start thinking about the future of our kids and how the move can be great for their education.” 

Immigration to the United States

Daulet and his family chose to settle in Baltimore, Maryland, to be closer to his friend and subsequently enrolled in language courses at a community college. Approximately 61 percent of Kazakhstan immigrants are proficient in English (speak English only and speak English very well), while 39 percent are not proficient (don’t speak English, don’t speak English well, and speak English well). 

“My wife, our two kids, and I moved to Baltimore, Maryland, from Kazakhstan in September 2022 as green card lottery holders. We chose Baltimore because my friend lives there, and we chose to be closer to him.

My wife and I decided to start learning the English language and enrolled in English as a Second Language (ESL) language courses offered by the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC). After taking a placement exam, I was placed in the pre-intermediate level, while my wife, who had never learned the language, was placed in the beginner level. I enrolled in two classes per week for three months, but was only able to study for two, while my wife joined daily courses for a month. Well, now she has caught up with me.

After completing the language courses, CCBC is interested in placing you in a job based on your interests. When we first came to CCBC, we had a comprehensive interview about our skills and experiences, discussing what we would be interested in doing. Almost every two months we received a brochure from the college announcing the start dates of professional courses. The list of professions is quite extensive, ranging from nursing to truck driving. If a course costs $600, we only pay $60.

I looked into the courses for electricians, but they demanded more time commitment than I initially anticipated, and I am not confident about my English. I also decided to take a break from studying since I felt exhausted from intensive English during the first months.

Overall, my English is not bad. I can even notice grammatical errors when people around me, who have lived here much longer, speak. However, I am still apprehensive about speaking because I fear making mistakes. Turns out when you know grammar, you try to speak correctly and overthink before opening your mouth.”

First Job in Construction

Daulet’s first job in the United States was working for a construction company specializing in kitchen renovations.

“My first job was at my friend’s company in Baltimore, specializing in kitchen renovations. He has been in this business for 10 years employing many Russian speakers. Because I am not confident about my English, it was a good place for me to start. My role involved removing all the doors from kitchens and painting them in the production facility. This process includes stripping the old coat and applying two coats of primer and two coats of fresh paint with a pulverizer. After this process, the quality of doors is as good as from a manufacturer’s facility.

I worked there for a year, which was the timeline I allowed myself to stay there. My colleagues there taught me the entire work cycle, and I came there as a complete novice.

I tried to break into the electrician profession and had two or three interviews, but wasn't successful; it turns out it is not easy to break into this field. Specifically, I was interested in HVAC and appliance repair for companies run by Russian speakers. However, Baltimore doesn't have many opportunities; it is not like New York where every second employer speaks Russian. I later learnt that Russian-speaking employers are not always transparent, and they might take advantage of you. Progressing in this profession under such circumstances can be difficult.”

Transitioning to Trucking

To secure the financial well-being of his family, Daulet decided to pursue a career as a long-haul truck driver.

“After my little luck breaking into the electrical field, I made the decision to obtain a commercial driver’s license (CDL) to become a long-haul driver. That idea initially took root a decade ago when I came across discussions on social media about the potential for easy and quick money in this occupation. It was one of the options I had been considering even before our move to the United States.

While studying for my CDL, I wasn’t entirely sure if I would pursue this profession since I was hoping to become an electrician. Well, here I am, speaking to you from inside the truck while my colleague is driving. I just started a two-week apprenticeship, and have given myself a one-to-two-year timeline; I don't think I will continue in this profession beyond that period. Then, I think my prospects will become clearer. I am considering starting my own business eventually, but I am not ready to take the risk at the moment. I still think truck driving will be a good experience. I even get to use a lot of English and communicate with English speakers. 

Trucking is hard and being away from my family makes it even tougher. However, I believe that I can build a solid financial foundation for my family in this profession. We didn’t come with just a couple of hundred dollars like some immigrant families, but the money we brought was enough for a couple of months. Our monthly expenses are around $3,500. Despite my mother's suggestion from Kazakhstan that we should return, we are determined not to give up so easily.

I also harbor no illusions about trucking. Some people enter the trucking business expecting money to pour in right away, but I don’t share that belief.”

Adjusting to Life in the States

Daulet is gradually becoming acquainted with his community in Baltimore and meeting many Russian-speakers. It is noteworthy that there are an estimated 941,659 individuals who speak Russian at home in the United States, with around two percent of them residing in Maryland. The top three states with large Russian-speaking populations are New York (23%), California (18%), and Washington (6%). 

People in Kazakhstan are generally bilingual. Seventy-six percent of the total population identified as speaking two or more languages, and 74 of the population is fluent in Kazakh and 72 percent is fluent in Russian (Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan 2021a).

“We thought that integrating would be easier if we became part of the Kazakh diaspora. I looked up Nowruz [celebrates spring equinox on March 21] celebrations in different locations and even considered going to another state. Eventually, we went to Washington, D.C., where we met various people, including recent arrivals like students and those who had been living here for a while. My daughter even performed playing the dombra [Kazakh national string musical instrument]. However, I wouldn’t say we immediately found a community or integrated into a group of people. We observed that individuals are consumed with their lives here.

In Baltimore, we live in a diverse community where around 60 percent are African Americans, and 30 percent are Latin Americans. Initially, our downstairs neighbors complained that we made a lot of noise, but over time, we became friends. There is also a really nice elderly African American man whom our other neighbor is terrified of, and I don’t know why. We help him and drive him to grocery shops. We know our neighbors and greet them. One day, they confessed that they had thought we were from Japan. We told them we were from Kazakhstan, and after seeing their confusion, we had to explain what Kazakhstan is.

We run into Russian speakers in shops in Baltimore and have noticed that Russian speakers are different as well. So our impressions of ethnic Russians from Russia are slightly different now. We have had an instance when we struck up a conversation with one of them and received a comment that our Russian was surprisingly good. We just rolled our eyes.”

Daulet also shared his wife’s struggles with adjustment in the United States after immigrating:

“My wife was very stressed when we moved to the United States because she was unemployed for the first several months. She was not too enthusiastic about moving here to begin with, but she followed me. She was a respected doctor in Almaty and would go to Russia for various professional advancement courses. She was an ultrasound doctor there, though here it is called an ultrasound technician. When we moved here, she started receiving requests to teach in Kazakhstan because she was well regarded. She fell into depression because she was without a job and felt useless here.

Then she went to work at a Russian store in Baltimore as a sales assistant. After meeting various people there, she cooled off a bit. She now wants to improve her English and become an ultrasound technician. Therefore, after working in the Russian store for three months, she realized she won’t learn any English there, and now she is a sales assistant at T.J. Maxx and gets to practice her English.”

Challenges of Adjusting to Life in the States

Adjusting to a lower position in his career ladder after coming to the United States has been difficult for Daulet, who held managerial positions in Kazakhstan. Another challenge his family encountered was understanding medical insurance and medical bills.

“First, the difficulty of working was that I came here with ample managerial work experience in Kazakhstan. As a chief engineer, I was like a landlord –  I am joking, of course – and had anywhere from 10 to 30 people working for me. My duty was to use my brain and delegate tasks. Here, I was doing physical work by cleaning doors and using my hands and strength. I had moments when I thought, ‘Is it worth it?’

Then you realize that you still have to give it a try and give it some time. I tell my kids now that my wife and I complicated our lives, so they will have an easier time in theirs.

Second, something we still have trouble with is understanding the insurance business here. The first year we used interpretation services to understand our insurance coverage. This year, we decided to use a Russian-speaking business and bought insurance through them. To be honest, we still don't understand why it costs so much and what services are included.

My wife is used to her past practice that if something hurts, she turns to ultrasound and a range of tests for peace of mind. The last time she used medical services, we were charged $300 dollars, which is a lot, and the quality of medical services was disappointing. She thought that she was treated with little compassion. My wife is now worried about serious medical issues. It feels like there is no logic in the medical system here, or we are just behind in understanding this system and need to catch up. I would overall caution immigrants with chronic diseases about high costs of medical care.

As my wife explains, drawing from her work experience in Kazakhstan, when she used to see patients, she initially assesses their primary complaints. Based on the results, she refers patients to a specialist. A week later, she contacts the specialist to follow up on the patient and learn about any additional insights. Here, the health system operates more like a conveyor belt.”

Support in Adjusting 

Daulet believes that his network of friends in the United States welcomed his family and made their transition easier. As a parent, he celebrates his two children’s fluency in English within two years. 

“The positive aspects of living here align with the positive impressions I have of life. When I look around and see the houses, the general atmosphere, it pleases my eyes; there is something inherently positive about it. At work, I have friends, and there is a sense of support, trust, and camaraderie. When we first arrived, my classmate welcomed us, and overall, our transition was smooth. I was pleasantly surprised by the kindness of people here. 

Recently I had to take my son to doctor’s office because one of his eyes turned red. I was amazed at how fluently he was speaking English and how confident he was with the doctor. He picked English up so fast after only two years at school. My daughter is 13 and my son is 14. My son will start high school next year, and I have full confidence that he will be fine.”

Advice to New Immigrants

Daulet highly recommends that new immigrants learn English, be prepared for a potential fall in their social status, and prepare their kids to live and study in multicultural environments. 

“I would recommend new immigrants to start learning English, especially if they decide to stay in the States. Immigrants should immerse themselves relentlessly in learning English, sparing no effort in the pursuit of language proficiency. They should also be prepared for a potential fall in their status and be open to doing jobs that might hurt their self-esteem.

Immigrant families should also prepare older kids to expect a diverse range of races in America. I sent my kids to a Russian school in Almaty when we lived in Kazakhstan to expose them to various nationalities and help them grow more tolerant. However, they still had a hard time adjusting in the United States. For instance, my daughter once had a conflict with her African American peers in school. The girls from behind were touching her hair, which irritated her, and she pulled one girl’s hair in response. Later, I explained to her that those were the same girls who admired her hair and probably didn’t intend to hurt her; they might have just wanted to feel her hair.

You know, intentions could be benign, but you might perceive them negatively. Therefore, I think parents need to prepare their kids because the mentality is different. Sometimes, kids don’t know how to interpret actions.

The last piece of advice I would give to new immigrants is to learn simple professions in Kazakhstan, such as appliance repair, HVAC, or tiling. Females can learn manicure, pedicure, and hairdressing. These are not hard to learn while living in Kazakhstan.”

Note: Unless noted differently, all statistics here come from IPUMS USA: Version 12.0 [American Community Survey (ACS) 2016-2020 5 year averages and the United States, 1850-2020]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2022. https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V12.0

Bibliography 

Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan. 2021a. “National composition, religion and language proficiency in the Republic of Kazakhstan: Results of the National Population Census of 2021.”

Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan. 2021b. “Population of the Republic of Kazakhstan: Results of the National Population Census of 2021.”

Central Intelligence Agency. n.d. “Kazakhstan - The World Factbook.” Retrieved February 28, 2024 (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/kazakhstan/#geography).

IPUMS NHGIS. n.d. “National Historical Geographic Information System.” Retrieved February 28, 2024 (https://www.nhgis.org/).

IPUMS USA. 2020. “2016-2020, ACS 5-Year Sample.” Retrieved November 17, 2023 (https://usa.ipums.org/).

U.S. Department of State. 2023. “Diversity Visa Program Statistics.” Retrieved November 21, 2023 (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/diversity-visa-program-entry/diversity-visa-program-statistics.html).