The article examines the features of the transformation of higher education in the context of globalization and digitalization, which have a significant impact on the content, forms and methods of organizing educational activities. The transition to a digital society, strengthening international integration, the development of artificial intelligence technologies and online communication create new opportunities for the modernization of the country's educational system, but at the same time pose a number of serious challenges to it.

The analysis identified key directions for the development of Kazakhstani higher educational institutions: the internationalization of the educational space, the active introduction of digital technologies, the expansion of the academic autonomy of universities, as well as the formation of the competencies of the future necessary for graduates to successfully realize themselves in the exploits of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It is noted that internationalization will manifest itself not only in the academic mobility of students and teachers, but also in the adaptation of educational programs to international standards, the development of bilingual and English-language education, the participation of Kazakhstan's universities in global rankings and international scientific and educational projects.

Digitalization of higher education is seen as a strategic direction that contributes to improving the availability and quality of education, expanding opportunities for individualization of educational trajectories, and development. Electronic libraries and online courses. At the same time, it is emphasized that this process is accompanied by the risks of digital inequality, uneven access to modern technologies and insufficient digital literacy of some teachers and students.

Particular attention in the article is paid to issues of academic autonomy, which is considered as the most important condition for the development of competitive universities that can independently determine the priorities of scientific research, educational strategies and personnel policy. At the same time, the need for the responsibility of universities for the quality of education, the preservation of academic ethics and the strengthening of the spiritual and moral foundations of education is emphasized.

The authors of the article draw attention to the contradictory nature of globalization processes: on the one hand, they contribute to the openness, innovativeness and mobility of the educational environment, and on the other hand, they can lead to the loss of cultural identity, the formalization of innovations and the weakening of the humanitarian foundations of education.