About the School

IH Almaty is a large school, with centres in various neighbourhoods around the city.

Our school was approved by Cambridge Assessment English (former ESOL) to deliver CELTA in 2007, and later, in 2019, all DELTA Modules: M1, M2 and M3 were added to our range of international professional development courses.

In 2009 we received accreditation for running the IHCYLT-International House Certificate in Teaching Young Learners and Teens, and, since that time, we have been successfully training both novice and experienced teachers in delivering YL classes communicatively.

Our teachers teach general english courses for adults and younger learners, exam-classes, and business English courses for companies and executives.

How ever you would like to develop your teaching skills, there will be an opportunity at IH Almaty! Staff have the opportunity to move between different areas of the company, and academic and support staff have room for development and promotion. Teachers & trainers are encouraged to give seminars, write articles, conduct action research,etc, as part of their own CPD.

Come to Almaty to find ten differences between mountains and hills and do your CELTA or DELTA with an excellent international team of trainers!

Life in and around Almaty

Almaty, once the capital of Kazakhstan, is a vibrant city in a multi-ethnic multi-lingual country. Its people are hospitable, welcoming and interesting.

The landscape boasts some of the most breath-taking natural beauty to be seen anywhere, and there is something to suit every taste. Spanning two time zones, Kazakhstan is situated in the heart of Eurasia rich in landscape with deserts, steppes, savannas, wild forests, pristine lakes and rivers, mountains and glaciers.

Almaty nestles at the foot of the Tien Shan mountains which are a natural paradise with deep canyons, abundant wildlife like snow leopards and bears. You may also enjoy the ski resorts and ice skating with the locals. The best time to visit is between April and October, when the weather is warm, and you can easily visit most of the mountain sites: Big Almaty Lake, Butakovski y Waterfalls, Medeu, Chimbulak, Charyn Canyon, Kolsay and Kayandy picturesquare surroundings.

Recent economic wealth means that the city of Almaty is modern and highly developed, giving an interesting contrast of mid 20th Century history to a modern independent country. Many of the best places in Almaty are in the centre and within walking distance from each other. You can enjoy the best natural goods at the Green Bazaar, relax on a sunny day in the shadows of pine trees in Panfilov’s park and learn about the history and culture in Almaty Museum.

“For me, one of the most pleasant and surprising things in Almaty was an amazing cafe scene. There were so many good cafes and coffee shops with reasonable prices and a great selection of food and drinks, including local cuisine and international. I wish I could have more time to explore Almaty, and check all cool places Almaty has for tourists” Agnieszka, CELTA student and traveller, 2019

Studying at IH Almaty

Most national airlines fly to Almaty – there are regular flights from London, Istanbul, Frankfurt, Moscow etc. Almaty International airport is located 25 km away from the city centre. You can get to the city centre from the airport by municipality bus, taxi or car.

Municipality bus #92departs every 15 min just outside of the airport. Tickets cost 80 KZT (local currency) and the trip takes approximately 40 minutes. There are also many taxis available that can take you to the city. Taxis cost 3000-4000 KZT on average to the city centre during the nights and 2800-3000 KZT during the daytime.

Almaty is a well-organized city and it has good public transportation network. You can get around the city with buses, rented cars, trolley buses, metro and taxis, and quite recently bicycles became a new feature of the city’s internal transportation.

Taxis are very convenient and cheap. Uber or Yandex taxi are very popular among locals and visitors. IH schools are easily approachable by any means of transportation.

There are lots of coffee shops, restaurants, besparmak-shashlyk (local cuisine) places nearby our schools with Kurmangazy InterPress IH being located in the heart of the centre and the most attractive for work breaks and lunches.