The Top 7 Cheapest (and Easiest!) Places to Learn Russian
The places where you can learn – and actually use – Russian.
Russian ain’t easy.
If you’re only used to speaking English, approaching a language like Russian may seem like a daunting task. It’s got weird letters! Bizarre grammar! Scary sounds that seem impossible for our English-trained mouths to pronounce!
These things may be true, but once you’ve committed yourself to learning the language, getting a grasp on Russian is totally doable. Of course, the best way to do this is by going to a place where you can put your education into practice.
In this article, we’re going to go through the cheapest – and best – places to learn Russian. I’m only going to include top quality places in this article – I am sure there are budget schools around the world who will be very happy to take your money to “teach you” Russian, but here, we’re only looking at the best of the best in environments where you can actually practice it!
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Minsk, Belarus
Minsk, Belarus is quickly becoming one of my favorite cities in Eastern Europe. Not only is it clean, safe, and culturally rich, it’s also ridiculously affordable. For example, getting a one-bedroom apartment in the city center will only cost you around $400/month, and when you want to go out to a bar, a beer will only run you about $1.50 on average.
These savings extend to language learning. The Minsk State Linguistic University is recognized around the world for its high-quality education when it comes to interpretation training, but more recently, its Russian programs have started to garner international attention.
Classes at the university are ultra affordable. A 12-month group course at Minsk State Linguistic University only costs $2600 (source). At 20 academic hours per week, that means you’re paying on average only $2.50 per academic hour – a truly incredible rate for such a top tier education!
In addition to group courses, individual courses are also available year-round, with prices averaging around $12.50 per academic hour.
While the government of Belarus is trying to push more people to use the Belarusian language, you may be fearful that immersion in Minsk is not possible. Not true. Everyone in Minsk speaks Russian, and most use it as their main language. If you choose to study in Minsk, you’ll have no problem putting your education into practice in the real world.
For more information, visit their website.
Riga, Latvia
When walking through Riga, Latvia, it’s easy to convince yourself you’ve stumbled into a Russian city. Signs are in Russian, you hear Russian through the streets – in fact, over 50% of Riga’s population is Russian!
This makes Riga an ideal place to study the language, especially because EU residents do not require a visa to stay there during their period of study. Not only are language classes cheap – 48 academic hours costs only €279 (~$310, or about $6.50/academic hour for group lessons) – but the cost of living in Riga is relatively low compared to other European capitals.
A one-bedroom apartment in the city center will only run you around $450, and with low prices for things like food, internet (Riga boasts blazing fast internet speeds with widespread coverage), and transit, learning Russian in the Latvian capital is a natural choice.
Classes are available through the Baltic Media Language Training Centre. Click here for more info.
Almaty, Kazakhstan
Almaty is the biggest city in all of Kazakhstan. With almost 2 million people, studying in this bustling central-Asian metropolis is a dream. Pretty much everyone speaks Russian (the native Kazakh is only spoken by about 30% of the population), and setting up a life as a foreigner in the country is getting easier by the day.
Al-Farabi Kazakh National University in Almaty offers a nine-month preparatory Russian course for $1,684, with an added residence costing anywhere from $250 to $450 depending on where you choose to reside.
Cost of living in Almaty is also very low. While you may have some trouble securing some necessities like an apartment just because of the language barrier, once you do, you’ll find that the prices are incredibly reasonable. If you choose to not live in student housing, single bedroom apartments in the city center go for around $300, with that price decreasing as you move further from the middle. A beer at a bar is similarly low: only around $1 for a half liter.
If you’d like to avoid the university system, Almaty is also filled with private tutors teaching Russian at low prices. Exact figures can be negotiated once you get to the city.
For more information about studying in Almaty at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, check out their English website here.
Kiev, Ukraine
Learning Russian in Ukraine is admittedly controversial, especially given the tumultuous relationship between the two countries. That said, it’s totally doable, and in the city you’ll find plenty of people willing and able to speak Russian; about a quarter of the population speaks the language natively, with more still able to understand and communicate in it.
Plenty of schools around Kiev offer Russian language lessons. Sixty academic hours of group classes at the Lev Tolstoy School in Kiev costs only around $180, or $3 per academic hour. A year-long course at the Echo Eastern Europe Language School in Kiev costs merely ~$3,300 – a price that includes housing, visa support, and more.
Life outside of the university in Kiev is also great. I wrote a full guide to the city on another part of my site, which you can find here. I’ve also covered the best restaurants in the city, available here.
Berlin, Germany
You might be thinking, “What? Germany? Don’t they speak German?” Well, of course, but they also heavily subsidize language lessons, which means you can move to this vibrant city and learn German for a pretty fair price.
For only about €100-150, you’ll get 32 academic hours of Russian education at the Berliner Volkshochschule, which balances out to €3-5 per academic hour – a great deal, if you ask me!
Plus, Berlin has a significantly large Russian-speaking population. Many older people from East Germany will be able to speak Russian as a second language, and there are plenty of neighborhoods where hearing Russian is a common occurrence. In the neighborhood Marzahn, for example, one out of every four people speaks Russian either natively or as a second language. Other neighborhoods, like Charlottenburg, have earned Russo-fied nicknames, e.g. “Charlottengrad.”
To see what Russian courses are currently on offer, check out the Berliner Hochschule website here.
Russia
This one might seem stupidly obvious, but when looking for places to study Russian, there’s really nowhere better than its country of origin. While moving to the two major Russian cities of St. Petersburg and Moscow may be prohibitively expensive, there are plenty of opportunities to learn Russian at language schools in other areas of the country.
Top-tier universities exist all around Russia, with some offering Russian language university preparatory classes and others providing Russian Language majors for those who choose to study there. By enrolling in a university outside of Moscow or St. Petersburg, you have the opportunity for full immersion while saving a bit of cash.
On average, a full year of Russian language training at a Russian university will cost you $2,310. Once you enroll in full-time studies, that number goes up to $ 3,385-3,690 per year. However, these numbers may go up or down depending on scholarships.
For more information about learning Russian, there’s a great website run by the Russian government with more information about how to learn the language in the country. Click here to be taken there!
At home
Learning a language by yourself can be grueling. That’s why I use services that connect me to tutors online, allowing me to improve my language ability before I get to a destination.
For Russian, iTalki has some great teachers at even better prices. You can get 5-star rated teachers from around the Russian speaking world for only $8 an hour, and you can complete these lessons from the comfort of your own home. Check out the available options on iTalki here.
More than simply being a way to learn Russian, taking simple lessons over Skype is a great way to ease your transition into one of the aforementioned locations. By using a service like iTalki, you can kick off your Russian language training, putting you far ahead of the others in your class before you’ve even started.
What are some other locations where you can learn Russian? Leave them in the comments down below!
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