Career · Sport and movement
Swimming instructor
Teaches people to swim and stay on the water and keeps them safe.
Career overview
What a day looks like
An instructor runs sessions at the pool: shows the movements, corrects technique and supports those who are afraid of water. All the time they watch over the safety of the swimmers.
Try it yourself this week
30 minutes
Put together a 10-minute warm-up and do it yourself
- Build a warm-up in three parts: joints (from top to bottom), light cardio, stretching. No weights.
- Do it yourself with a timer and pay attention to how you feel. If anything hurts, stop.
- Write down what was easy and where you fell behind on time.
- Rework the plan the way you'd explain it to a group of ten-year-olds: what words, what pace, what to demonstrate. You can run it for a brother, sister or friend — if you want to.
What you'll learn about yourself: What suits you more: moving yourself, or coming up with exercises and explaining them to others — and whether you have the patience for repetition.
30 minutes
Analyse 15 minutes of a match or training session like a coach
- Choose a recording of any match or of your own training — any sport or dance.
- Watch 15 minutes and pick one player. Write down three things they do well and one thing they could improve.
- Write this player a piece of advice in two sentences — so they don't get upset and understand what to do.
- Think it over and write down: was it more interesting to watch the game, or to look for mistakes and figure out how to fix them?
What you'll learn about yourself: Whether you notice the details of movement and can talk about someone's mistake in a way that makes them want to get better.
What you can do next
Next 3 months
Plan a warm-up for a session
Make up a ten-minute warm-up and do it yourself.
In six months
Go through water safety rules
Find rules for behaviour near water in a reliable source and make a reminder for younger children. Never swim without an adult.
In a year
Ask a specialist
Together with your parents, ask an instructor how they run the first lessons with beginners.
What it pays
No verified information is available in this section yet.
Where to study
No verified information is available in this section yet.
How to get into college
College gets you a profession faster than university. You can apply after grade 9 or after grade 11.
- Colleges accept students both after grade 9 and after grade 11. After grade 9 you study longer — about 3 years 10 months; after grade 11, about 2 years 10 months. The exact length depends on the college and the specialty.
Source: kchk.edu.kz (opens in a new tab) - About 80% of students admitted to colleges in the 2024/25 school year study on a state order, which means in state-funded places (in 2023/24 it was about 70%). But each college and each specialty has its own number of state-funded places.
Source: inbusiness.kz (opens in a new tab) - There are also paid colleges. For example, training as a nurse at ADILMED costs 450,000 ₸ per year. Check the price and conditions on the college's website.
Source: adilmed.kz (opens in a new tab)
UNT: which subjects to take for university
The UNT (Unified National Testing) is Kazakhstan's national university entrance test. You need it to get into university after grade 11.
- The UNT 2026 has three compulsory subjects: History of Kazakhstan, Reading Literacy and Mathematical Literacy. On top of these, you take two profile subjects, chosen to match your specialty.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - In total, the test has 120 questions (maximum 140 points) and you get 4 hours. The format is the same as in 2025.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - Profile subjects depend on the group of specialties. For example: information technology — Mathematics and Computer Science; nursing and veterinary medicine — Biology and Chemistry; electrical engineering — Mathematics and Physics; law — World History and Fundamentals of Law. The full list is published by the National Testing Center.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - For creative specialties (for example, media and design), you take History of Kazakhstan and Reading Literacy through the UNT, and two creative exams at the university itself.
Source: testcenter.kz (opens in a new tab) - Some universities have their own admission rules. Nazarbayev University, for example, requires a UNT score of at least 85, a GPA of 4.0 and English at IELTS 6.0 level.
Source: nu.edu.kz (opens in a new tab)
Courses and opportunities
No verified information is available in this section yet.
History of the career
No verified information is available in this section yet.
Well-known people in this field
No verified information is available in this section yet.