Costa Rica: You Get What You Put Into It Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Like anywhere, it really depends on the professors. There are some amazing profs at this school and a couple who are really unpopular, so I don't think it's fair to generalize on my experience. The workload was light compared to my college and was generally simpler material, but reasonable seeing as it was the norm for students to travel every weekend. I stayed home in San Jose the weekend before midterms and the weekend before finals, traveled every other weekend, and easily finished all my work and got all A's. It was heavy on lecture and note-taking, lighter on discussion than I am used to. Also, a few professors liked to do oral quizzes - so when they call on you you are actually getting graded on it, so kids who are shy in front of classmates or who freeze on the spot really hated that. I didn't take Spanish classes but I heard from others that they were extremely effective.

On-site administration of your program

They kind of treated us like high-schoolers, but I may feel this way because I went as a senior, and I understand that there were a lot of people in the program who chose Costa Rica as a sort of extended spring break and were frankly embarrassing to be associated with - so the staff had a wide range of students to be responsible for and naturally had to taper their methods to the ones who would push the boundaries and endanger themselves. If you are a mature individual they may come across as belittling but it's not a problem per se as they will be able and willing to handle any questions, etc.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The neighborhood was one of the safest in San Jose (and we were appropriately warned about avoiding dangers). I was the farthest of anyone in my program from school but it was still only a 15 minute walk. I had my own bedroom with a large closet and small desk. I pack pretty light and found that I had far more than enough space for my belongings and was very at-home. If you don't find this arrangement spacious enough, you over-packed. The rules with our families were very reasonable - it's kind of like staying with cousins or a family friend, you are comfortable but shouldn't run wild and need to respect boundaries. I was treated as a family member and my host family was probably the highlight of the entire experience. We were in pairs or groups of Americans living with a family and the other American in my house left the program early and then I found that it was much better alone. I recommend living alone with a host family (you become a more integrated part of the family when you don't have another American to team up with) and for consistent language use, etc. My Spanish improved more than the students who lived with other Americans in a residencia or

My Mama Tica cooked very simple, natural, but tasty and healthy food. They do a survey at the very beginning and I recommend being extremely honest about what you like to eat - some people tried being polite or sounding open-minded by downplaying their preferences and they ended up eating a lot of things they hated. I was honest that I don't eat much meat, no pork, etc, and my Mama Tica was great about accomodating it and I still got to try tons of authentic dishes. If you are vegan, many things in Costa Rica will appear to be ok for you (tons of veggies, rice and beans) but the cooking methods at restaurants are more lax than here, so your veggies WILL be grilled on the same surface as beef, beans may not be vegetarian, things like that. Easy to be a vegetarian here and even avoid dairy, or have an allergy, but be reasonable. Because of all the tourists it's easy to find American food but just avoid it. Costa Rican food is awesome and has a huge influence over how I cook now.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

The program has a few planned trips the first few weekends, and they are great especially for getting to know the other people more closely. However, they give you expensive, though technically optional, activities to do and I felt pressured to break my tight budget. They were much better deals than you would get if you went alone, but it really strained my spending money at the start. My budget was very tiny compared to everyone else, so you will probably think this stuff is awesome. Also, they send you to really nice hotels and it creates this wierd dynamic because you are trying to integrate into a culture during the week and then being put in tourists' shoes on the weekend. I'm not complaining that they took us to beautiful places but I didn't study abroad to go on a luxury vacation. More cultural activities and low-key places rather than obvious touristy attractions would have been cooler for me. Also, the most negative part of the program socially was the fact that there are so many international students at Veritas that the local student body and the international students are highly segregated. It is very hard to integrate and make friends with locals when you are completely surrounded by other Americans. The program and school also institutionalized this segregation by hosting separate events, etc.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

San Jose is like any other city, in that you need to watch your back and hang out with people smart enough to do the same. If you are suburban and don't lock your doors at home, get ready for a total change in mindset. Girls shouldn't really go out after dark alone in San Jose, even if it gets dark at 7. Take a cab - they're extremely cheap so there is no excuse to be imprudent. I listened to the advice of the program staff and was very protective of my belongings, dressed modestly and blended in pretty well, and I never got ripped off, grabbed, or felt very unsafe. Do not get visibly drunk when you're out - you will make a fool of yourself and endanger yourself. Many other people in the program acted like they were on their home college campuses, walking home drunk and/or alone late at night or going in huge groups to bars, and they drew tons of attention to themselves as foolish rich Americans and got mugged or robbed, etc. If you are cautious you really have no reason to worry, but if you plan on acting like you're at home in a safe bubble, that will get you into a dangerous situation or at the very least make your camera disappear. San Jose is not the place to act like things happen to everyone but you - don't mess up and don't push your luck. If you do something stupid like fall asleep on a bus while your backpack is overhead (rather than on your lap or wrapped around your leg) and it disappears, the staff will have no sympathy. Girls - when going out, I recommend not carrying a purse, and avoid flashy jewelry - I brought my house key and some cash tucked into a pocket or shoe and never had to worry about it. Also, you're going to attract lots of attention, which makes you a target, if you wear obviously American brands and styles - leave your short jean shorts and running shorts at home. Even if you are blonde, you can still pass as an expat or something if you dress more like the locals. You are safer here if you blend in more. The program staff do a good job giving you tips, you just need to follow them. As far as health, the program hooks you up with the nicest clinic in the country - which seems great, but if something goes wrong and you don't have deep pockets, you get screwed until the reimbursement from the insurance comes back (which takes a while). A friend of mine got bronchitis and ended up paying $250 out of pocket for her appointment, tests, and medication, and although she was going to be reimbursed later it didn't matter for while she was still in CR with a slashed budget. The director was very unclear about how expensive it would be and my friend actually ended up taking up the issue with her later because she was upset with a few parts of the procedure. In a totally different case that reflects the local healthcare outside the program, my boyfriend visited me and needed some pretty urgent dental work and it only cost $40 at a private clinic.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

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