| Ala-Too International University | |
| Native Name: | Международный университет «Ала-Тоо» |
| Former Name: | Ala-Too International University |
| Mottoeng: | Gateway to the world! |
| Established: | 1996 |
| Address: | 1/8 Ankara Street |
| Coor: | 42.856°N 74.6812°W |
The Ala-Too International University (Russian: Международный университет «Ала-Тоо»; Kirghiz; Kyrgyz: Ала-Тоо Эл аралык Университети), formerly known as the International Atatürk-Alatoo University, is a private university located in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan that was established in 1996. The university offers graduate, masters, and doctoral programs.
English is the primary medium of instruction at the university. However, some classes are taught in Russian and a few other classes are taught in Turkish.
The Ataturk-Alatoo University was affiliated and funded by Muhammed Fethullah Gülen and his group advocating global Islamic education.[1] Following the failed 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, which the Turkish government blamed on Gülen, the university changed its name from the International Atatürk-Alatoo University to the Ala-Too International University, appointed a Kyrgyz rector, and generally started to position itself more as a local institution.
The Ala-Too International University was established as the International Atatürk-Alatoo University in 1996 by the Sebat Educational Foundation which promotes and follows the tenets of Islam espoused by Fethullah Gülen.[2]
In the wake of the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, which the Turkish government blames on Gülen, the administration of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan demanded that Kyrgyzstan close down institutions affiliated with the Gülen movement.[3] However, the Kyrgyz government refused to comply with Ankara's demands.[4] In February 2017, the Turkish government announced that diplomas issued by the Ala-Too International University would no longer be valid in Turkey.[5]
Subsequently, the name of the university was changed from the International Atatürk-Alatoo University to the Ala-Too International University. The name of the organization that runs the Ala-Too International University along with 35 other schools and colleges was also changed from the Sebat Educational Foundation to the Sapat Educational Foundation. Sapat means "quality" in Kyrgyz.
The Ala-Too International University has the following departments and programs: