What you will learn at each level

A1.1 (Absolute Beginner)

In your first course, you will learn the basics of Russian. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Read and write the Cyrillic alphabet with confidence.
Introduce yourself and others (name, nationality, profession).
Use basic greetings.
Count and use numbers for ages, prices, and quantities.
Understand and use simple everyday phrases.
Grammar: Gender of nouns (he, she, it), personal pronouns (I, you, he, she), present tense of key verbs (to be, to live, to work, to study).

A1.2 (Elementary)

Building on the basics, you will learn to navigate simple daily situations. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Talk about your family, hobbies, and daily routine.
Describe your home and city in simple terms.
Order food and drinks in a cafe.
Ask for and give directions to key locations.
Understand simple questions and announcements.
Grammar: Introduction to cases (Prepositional Case for location, Accusative Case for direct objects), possessive pronouns (my, your, our), past tense of verbs.

After completing A1, you will:

Introduce yourself and others: Confidently say your name, nationality, profession, and talk about your family.
Handle everyday interactions: Ask and answer simple questions about well-known topics (e.g., “Where do you live?”, “What is your phone number?”).
Navigate basic situations: Order food and drinks, shop for essentials, and understand prices and numbers.
Understand simple language: You’ll be able to read and write simple phrases and fill out forms with personal details.
You will know about ~500 words.

A2.1 (Pre-Intermediate)

You now start communicating in a wider range of routine situations. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Have short social conversations about familiar topics (weather, plans, hobbies).
Describe your past experiences and upcoming plans in basic terms.
Go shopping and communicate in stores and markets.
Understand the main point of short, clear texts like advertisements or menus.
Write a short message or postcard.
Grammar: Future tense, introduction to Verb Aspects (Imperfective/Perfective), Genitive Case for possession and negation.

A2.2 (Pre-Intermediate +)

You consolidate your knowledge and achieve a base level of fluency for everyday life. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Handle travel situations like booking a room or buying tickets.
Discuss your likes, dislikes, and preferences in more detail.
Describe events and tell a simple story.
Give simple advice or reasons for your actions.
Understand and use a broader range of vocabulary for daily life.
Grammar: Dative Case (for giving and recipients), Instrumental Case (for describing means or profession), numerals in different cases.

After completing A2, you will:

Describe your life: Talk about your background, immediate environment, and everyday needs in simple terms. You can describe your city, your hobbies, and your daily routine.
Navigate travel: Handle travel situations like checking into a hotel, ordering a taxi, and buying tickets. You can have short social conversations.
Understand common texts: Read and understand short, simple texts like advertisements, menus, and timetables. You can find specific information in simple everyday material.
Write simple notes: Write short notes, messages, and a simple personal letter (e.g., a postcard).
You will know about ~1,000 words.

B1.1 (Intermediate)

This is where you achieve true independence and can handle most situations while travelling. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Understand the main points of clear standard speech on familiar matters (e.g., radio news, podcasts).
Describe dreams, hopes, ambitions, and briefly give reasons for your opinions.
Talk about personal and professional goals.
Read and understand texts with everyday or job-related language.
Write simple connected text on topics that are familiar or of personal interest.
Grammar: All six cases in singular and plural, verbs of motion (without prefixes), conditional mood.

B1.2 (Intermediate+)

You refine your skills and learn to navigate more complex social and practical situations. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Participate in conversations on topics beyond your immediate needs (e.g., culture, current events).
Understand the plot of a large part of a film or TV show if the language is clear.
Deal with most situations likely to arise unexpectedly during travel.
Write detailed personal letters and essays expressing your views.
Grammar: Prefixes of verbs of motion, participles (introductory level), more complex sentence structures with conjunctions.

After completing B1, you will:

Discuss familiar topics: Talk about experiences, events, dreams, and ambitions. You can briefly give reasons and explanations for your opinions and plans.
Understand the main points: Understand the main ideas of clear standard speech and many radio/TV programs on current affairs or topics of personal interest.
Read authentic texts: Read and understand texts with everyday or job-related language. You can understand the description of events, feelings, and wishes in personal letters.
Write simple connected text: Write personal letters describing experiences and impressions. You can compose a short essay or story on a familiar topic.
You will know about ~2,000 words.

B2.1 (Upper-Intermediate)

You move towards fluency and can interact with native speakers spontaneously. Upon completion, you will be able to:

Understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics.
Interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction comfortable.
Present clear, detailed descriptions on a wide range of subjects.
Explain a viewpoint on a topical issue, outlining advantages and disadvantages.
Grammar: Active and passive participles, gerunds, advanced usage of verb aspects.

B2.2 (Upper-Intermediate+)

Upon completion, you will be able to:

Argue a point of view effectively, using persuasive language.
Understand contemporary literary prose and articles with complex arguments.
Write clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects.
Use language flexibly and effectively for social and professional purposes.
Grammar: Stylistic nuances, synonyms, advanced sentence construction.

After completing B2, you will:

Understand complex texts: Grasp the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in your field of specialization.
Interact spontaneously: Interact with a fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible. You can take an active part in discussions on familiar topics.
Present clear arguments: Present a clear, detailed description on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.
Write detailed text: Write clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects (essays, reports, letters) and explain your point of view.
You will know about ~4,000 words.

Level C1 (Advanced)

You are a proficient user. Your language use is effective and flexible for social, academic, and professional purposes.

Understand implicit meaning: Understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts and recognize implicit meaning (read between the lines).
Express ideas fluently: Express ideas fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. You can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic, and professional purposes.
Produce well-structured text: Produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects.
Handle complex subjects: Understand complex documentaries, interviews, and films with minimal effort.

Level C2 (Master)

You have mastered the language. Your competence is close to that of an educated native speaker.

Understand with ease: Understand virtually everything heard or read without effort.
Summarize information: Summarize information from different spoken and written sources, reconstructing arguments and accounts in a presentation.
Express yourself precisely: Express yourself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely.

After completing C2, you will:

You understand everything you hear or read in Russian, easily.
You can summarize complicated information from different sources.
You express your thoughts very fluently, precisely, and naturally, exactly like a native speaker.
You understand jokes, idioms, and subtle meanings.