What My Students Say

I came to Alex as an A2-level Russian student, and he helped me unlock the next level of fluency with patience, humor, and deep cultural insight. He expanded my vocabulary, taught me fun sayings and colloquial expressions, and guided me through complex topics like verbs of motion, cases (including tricky number cases), and conversational fluency. Our lessons were never boring — Alex has an incredibly funny and engaging personality, and I found myself laughing constantly while learning. Every session was a mix of practical grammar, real Russian conversation, and cultural insight from his life in Russia. For science, I even secretly recorded snippets of our conversations (so sorry Alex!) and played them for my Russian friends — all of whom confirmed that he speaks nearly accent-free! They were extremely impressed. If you're looking for a tutor who will not only teach you Russian but also keep you thoroughly entertained and motivated, I can't recommend Alex enough. Спасибо большое, Алекс! (2025)

Alex is an amazing teacher! I ask a lot of questions and he really walks through every one. He is very easy to work with and keeps the lesson fun and informative. I 100% recommend. (2025)

If you have more advanced grammar questions, this is your guy! (2025)

I have been taking lesson with Alex for a few months now. He is a wicked smart guy, good sense of humor and very flexible as well. It is refreshing to have grammar explained logically rather than going through drills or accepting ambiguous answers from natives. We have gone through many convoluted Russian texts, listening practices and difficult grammar concepts together . He is always happy to help, answer questions promptly and effectively . I also appreciate that he remembers material we covered in previous lessons Класс! (2024)

Imagine yourself explaining to a native Russian speaker what a gerund is. Or what the subjunctive is. Or, more simply, the "rules" for converting a noun into its plural form. If that sounds difficult for you, then you've just identified why native speakers of the language may not have gotten through to you. You use these concepts all the time but can't spell them out for others. There are fundamentals in any language that are absorbed through brute force, but never explicitly "learned." Alex has done this legwork for you in Russian, and he has built a lens into the language that few others can offer. There are no shortcuts in learning a language, but if such a thing exists, it's this approach. You will learn faster, as I have, if you understand the structure of the language while you build your vocabulary in parallel. If you're strung out from listening to native speakers repeat concepts over and over again, but Russian still feels like a tangled mess of tables, charts, and indecipherable concepts (verbs of motion, anyone?), then give Alex a shot. You won't be disappointed. (2024)

Excellent tutor! I would not be able to read, write, and speak as well as I am today if it weren't for Alex's great skills of teaching the Russian language. (2024)

Alex is a great tutor who helps to break down and explain things that can otherwise seem very confusing! He has helped me to understand and identify patterns in language which I would not otherwise have noticed or understood, I highly recommend him! (2023)

Listen. If you want to learn Russian in a concise and logical fashion with a cool guy who also can explain in English terms using a historic text, book the lesson! ***(ideally more than one)*** I have been taking lessons with Alex for almost four months, and can read the alphabet, pronounce words, and can understand sentence construction and recognize case endings--and this is on top of a full time job and a family. The lessons are worth every penny, and the knowledge you gain from Alex is top tier and gain the most critical information in an hour. I look forward to our lessons, and will be sad when I am fluent and no longer need Alex :( (2023)

Alex is a fantastic teacher. In the three lessons I’ve had with him I’ve already learned more about the mechanics of Russian language and pronunciation than I had previously learned in six months with another teacher.  He has a very accessible, straightforward but technical approach, which makes very complex ideas seem very simple and attainable to understand. Not being a native speaker, he also brings his own wealth of experience in learning the language, he’s super aware of the pitfalls and very detailed in ways to help a person master them. In the few lessons I’ve had, I’ve found that learning a new language really can be straightforward, if you have the right person teaching you. I’m very excited to see how my lessons progress with him, and I’m genuinely excited for each lesson. He’s absolutely worth the price. You pay for what you get! (2023)

Alex has been my Russian tutor for a year now, and I can say that not only my language skills, but most importantly my confidence has improved so much. He is very versatile, willing to adapt his lessons for whatever you wish to do. He is also very patient - great for speakers who may be nervous or have confidence issues, as he will never judge! His knowledge of complex Russian grammar and vocabulary makes him a great tutor for any level. I would recommend Alex to anyone who is looking to improve their Russian, whether for school or personal learning! Thank you Alex. (2023)

Someone recommended Alex to me, and I have not been disappointed with my first few lessons. He was fully capable of explaining any random questions that I have had about learning Russian, and has great resources to help understand the language better. He has really helped fill in some gaps that I missed when I started learning the language, like really explaining the alphabet, spelling, and verb conjugations in a way that I never understood before (and I have native Russian teachers that missed some of this foundational knowledge). (2023)

Alex is the only teacher to successfully teach me Russian grammar who I can't recommend enough. He is a non native speaker pursuing a PhD in Russian, which makes him the most qualified to teach you because he knows what it's like to learn Russian grammar as an outsider. I've worked with many teachers and even my wife is a native speaker but I could never advance my studies because I was missing the building blocks of the language. Alex has a unique system to explain the grammatical structure and it's been incredibly helpful. Prep.ly is lucky to have someone with his academic accolades but approachable teaching style. I always recommend others to him. (2022)

Alex has an exceptional command of the Russian language. His mastery of Russian grammar and ability to map the language for English speakers is unparalleled. Russian is not easy for native English speakers, but a solid understanding of Russian grammar has made all the difference as I've worked to learn Russian. Thanks to his guidance (and patience), I've greatly improved my proficiency in both Russian and English. I look forward to our classes each week and am grateful to have an opportunity to learn from a passionate, enthusiastic teacher. Большое спасибо за помощь, Алекс! (2021)

I've studied Russian for many years, and felt like I hit a plateau until starting lessons with Alex. Simply put, he is the best in the business. I have made quick progress thanks to his clear explanations of otherwise complex topics. For example, Russian grammar can be particularly challenging. But Alex identified and remedied gaps in my knowledge of fundamental concepts, which really set me up for success when we started tackling grammar. His explanations are clear and concise, but his wealth of knowledge means he's always prepared with clear explanations of even the most obscure topics. Alex is, undoubtedly, the best teacher out there to guide you through the complexities of the Russian language. (2021)

I had been learning Russian through conversation-focused lessons with a native tutor, but feeling that I wasn't making much progress, I stumbled upon Alex's lessons while searching for a new tutor. He accurately identifies the difficult aspects of learning Russian as a foreigner and approaches them differently than previous native tutors. In particular, his classes, based on his major in Russian literature, go beyond simple grammar understanding and help cultivate a new perspective on the emotions, culture, and history of Russians, which I had previously found dull. Despite being a very young tutor, he possesses vast knowledge, and it feels like half a notebook gets filled after each lesson :) Additionally, even though he is also a foreigner, he has lived in Russia and gained a wide range of experiences with various people, which helps keep him up-to-date with the conversation styles and trends of young Russians. I highly recommend him to anyone who is tired of simple conversation classes with native tutors or feels that their Russian skills are stagnant :) (2020)

I've been taking classes with Alex for little over 3 months, after a year of DuoLinguo - and the progress is night and day in terms of learning and satisfaction. If you're looking to learn in a logical, progressive, and thorough way - Alex is the person you're looking for. He's passionate, adaptable, academic - if you truly enjoy learning, this is the tutor you need. As a sidedish, you also get to benefit from his top notch subtle comedy quite often, which also broadens your understanding of the nuances of Russian language and culture! Большое спасибо Алекс! (2025)

I have been working with Alex for several months and highly recommend him. His expertise in grammar, language in context, and shades of meaning in various Russian topics like imperfective/perfective or verbs of motion is well worth the higher price. (2025)

Class with Alex feels like hanging out with your insanely smart, funny, and patient friend who has the answers to every obscure question you can think of and doesn't get annoyed when you ask the same thing a million times. He's done the heavy lifting of understanding and synthesizing tons of knowledge and can package it into digestible pieces, specifically referencing the skills and vocab you're confident with to give context to the unknown. If you're looking for a teacher who can tell you what a textbook cannot (who also has great Russian movie and music recs), Alex is your match. (2025)

I have studied Russian with Alex for a couple of months now. He’s professional, patient, and passionate about all things Russian language. It’s important to note Alex is different than many other tutors on Preply because he is actually a professionally-trained scholar of Russian language and literature with actual Russian language teaching experience at research universities. As such, his knowledge of Russian language and especially Russian grammar is top-notch. But he never comes across as pedantic - he is down-to-earth and more than willing to tailor his approach to the student’s plans. For example, I am learning Russian primarily for reading and research purposes - eg, to be able to read historical texts in the original Russian. Alex came up with a plan and recommended a textbook tailored to my needs (eg, focusing more on grammar and analyzing texts). Lessons with Alex are also punctuated with discussions of Russian history, literature, and culture, which I appreciate (Alex in particular has good recommendations of Soviet-era films and he has a graduate degree in Russian literature, so he has many interesting stories about Russian authors). And my advice — don’t be put off by the fact that Alex is not a native speaker of Russian. In fact, one reason I ended up deciding to learn Russian from Alex was precisely because he is not a native speaker: he understands the struggles of learning Russian as a foreign language and that empathy manifests itself in his teaching; he is able to share helpful tips and substantive analytical strategies for learning Russian as a foreign language; and he is able to actually explain the logic behind how and why Russian grammatical concepts are the way they are (and he does not just say things like “oh, that’s how it is, memorize it”). I look forward to continuing my Russian language studies with Alex and recommend him enthusiastically. (2024)

Alex is an outstanding language instructor. He's approachable, accommodating, and always ready to assist. Ηis unconventional teaching approach is incredibly effective and has captivated my interest from the very beginning. With his extensive knowledge and deep understanding of the unique complexities of the Russian language, Alex proves to be an exceptional teacher suitable for students of all levels. (2024)

Alex is an amazing teacher. I have been learning with him for a couple of months and have gotten much better at understanding grammar rules and general speaking/listening. Alex has helped me much more than videos and online websites especially when learning to speak. I recommend Alex for anyone who wants to learn Russian. (2023)

Alex is a great tutor, he is so patient and is really helping me improve my pronunciation and understanding of grammar rules. I would totally recommend him as a teacher. (2023)

Alex is a phenomenal teacher! He is very passionate and that energy is infectious. I used Duolingo and tried taking lessons with other teachers but I lost interest after a few lessons. It has been 2 months and I feel like I’ve learned a lot from him. He is very knowledgeable and answers questions thoroughly. I once had 18 questions and he was very patient. If you’re a beginner and you’re overwhelmed by all the grammar rules, don’t hesitate to book a lesson with him! (2023)

Alex is great! As an English speaker that learned Russian he understands every question I have because they are all things he worked through himself at some point. He’s patient and has pointed me in the right direction. I struggled to find valuable books that were actually for learning Russian and not just regurgitating phrases for travel. He solved that problem immediately and I have progressed more in these last few weeks than I did in months on my own or with other tutors. 5/5* (2023)

Alex is a great tutor. He is knowledgeable, thorough, and understands the pitfalls English speakers have when learning Russian and can help you through them. He helps you understand the fundamentals early so you have a good foundation to build your language development. Alex works with you at your pace, and despite the complexities of Russian, he makes learning fun. (2023)

It was clear from only one lesson that one lesson with Alex is worth many more from other teachers. Very lucky to have been introduced to him. (2023)

Alex has been awesome. It's nice to have someone who understands the language as a second language and being able to explain things from a structural point of view. I've had Russian native tutors who just say " thats how it is" but Alex explains why it's like that and it's helped me understand how the language works. Highly recommend. (2023)

Alex is absolutely an awesome tutor! The way he teaches Russian allowed me to see the language in a whole new way, and definitely for the better. My Russian has dramatically improved in less than 2 months. 100% recommend if you want to learn Russian efficiently. (2022)

Aside from his sheer and beautiful grasp of Russian grammar, Alex has horse sense. Where other teachers are voluble, he is straightforward. Where others are straightforward, he is precise. Neither is he a while in throwing words at you; but begins sparingly in his Russian vocabulary, and extends it as your understanding extends. He knows, of course, that languages are not learnt when grammar is thrown to the wind, but knows also that most of us aren't linguists. His students are guided by him in a way that he knows will make sense to them. And for all the rich treasures of Russian, Alex has a rich affection. This affection, a good deal of the time, he imparts to you; with all its necessary boredoms, frustrations, and loveliness. (2021)

Alex is the best Russian tutor I've met on Preply. In our trial lesson, I said "I think you might be the only professional in Preply universe" and I still think so. I had classes with at least five native speaker teachers since I started learning Russian last September. Unfortunately, most of them are "unsure of" many grammar points, such as which case a word in a sentence is exactly (because they don't often think about it.) Personally, I can't learn a foreign language "naturally" without knowing the exact grammar rules because I don't live in a Russian-speaking country. It's more worthy to learn a language in a linguistic way. (2021)

Alex is a friendly and excellent teacher with a deep grasp of the complexities of Russian as well as an ability to integrate complex topics into even rudimentary lessons. In lessons with Alex, you rarely feel like something more complex is being papered over - if you are confused about something, odds are Alex has a concrete but sophisticated answer. I highly recommend him to anyone interested in tackling Russian (2021)

Alex is an outstanding teacher. He is very methodical in that he knows one must understand A in order to later understand B and so on. So he structures his lessons accordingly. He's also extremely knowledgeable about the more arcane aspects of the Russian language and its history, the etymology of particular words, and so on. I always learn so much more than grammar or vocabulary in our lessons. I highly recommend him to anyone who wants to learn Russian. (2020)

I studied Russian at university, but I was very unlucky, and I did not find a good teacher. Then I found Alex and my Russian instantly got better and better. I may not have been lucky at uni but since I attended his classes, my life with the Russian has completely changed. He is super down to earth, happy to teach and easy to understand. He is very passionate about Russian grammar, but he is also a good teacher for practice. I recommend him to everyone! (2020)