Yoga Alliance International, Russia

Yoga Alliance International is an organization created to unite the world-wide community of yogic minded people and institutions, regardless of affiliation or tradition. It is also an international registrar of programs and yoga instructors and a training center. At the moment more than 80 directors (YAI Ambassadors) and regional/continental representatives of the Alliance operate in various countries throughout the world. Since 2014 the official representative of Russian division of the Yoga Alliance International is Sergey Repin – President of the Yoga Federation of Russia and head of the Yoga Instructors School. Yoga Alliance International is a world renowned yoga organization recognized by and registered with the government of India, founded by Sri Swami Vidyanand in order to create minimum standards for Yoga teachers and schools, as well as support continuing yoga education. Certificates issued by the Alliance are recognized worldwide.

One of the first Russian organizations which training programs were registered with and certified by YAI was Yoga Federation of Russia, which in addition to conducting social yoga events also trained yoga instructors. Later, after being granted the state license for its educational programs, Yoga Federation of Russia transferred all the teaching activities to its special department and successor – Yoga Instructors School.

YAI certified school means that its students feel secure knowing that this institution meets YAI’s high international standards and is authorized to provide fully certified Teacher Training Courses and YAI certificates. All graduating students of the Yoga Instructors School are able to get YAI diplomas without any additional exams. It’s a one-time fee for lifetime membership (as opposed, for example, to Yoga Alliance USA, where members make annual payments).

Yoga Alliance International standards are intended to regulate the yoga Industry and support the integrity of a Registered Yoga Teacher or a Registered Yoga School. Educational standards developed by the Yoga Alliance International include:

• YTTC-100 level – yoga instructor (Yoga Teacher Training Course, 100 hours)
• YTTC-200 level – yoga teacher (Yoga Teacher Training Course, 200 hours)
• YTTC-500 level – yoga master (Yoga Teacher Training Course, 500 hours)

For advanced YTTC-500 level students with significant experience and interest, Grandmaster level certification is also available after special education. Such an applicant must necessarily belong to a spiritual tradition. There are some «time frames» between educational steps and they may vary depending on different conditions, but on average, «the way from an instructor to a master» is no less than 12 years.

Yoga Instructors School is certified with YAI for YTTC-100, YTTC-200 and YTTC-500 training programs. Yoga Alliance International registration provides worldwide recognition of teacher’s knowledge, training and experience. Employers feel confident hiring a yoga professional knowing that his training meets YAI’s standards.