Pura Vida to the max!!! Past Review
By Myles Robinson (Virginia Commonwealth University / VCU) - abroad from 06/02/2018 to 07/14/2018 with
Study Abroad Programs in Costa Rica
So much outside the classroom about Costa Rica, the Spanish language, and Ticos in general. It was my first time outside of the U.S for longer than a week and I learned so much in those past six weeks.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The Spanish courses were in-depth and allowed students to learn fairly quickly with the combination of constant presentations, projects, and interactions with students from different Spanish levels, with the immersive experience of being in a Spanish-speaking environment. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The SOL Directors were the best group of administrators I ever had. They did an amazing job teaching us numerous things about Costa Rica usually on weekend and weekday excursions. Also they allowed us to explore on our own as they afforded us the trust and respect that we gave right back to them. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The homestay family was arguably the best part of this experience! My Mama Tica was extremely nice, gracious, and very inquisitive of American culture. She did a great job representing Costa Rican culture and cooking many meals that illustrated that. |
| * Food: |
The food was amazing, fresh, and very healthy! There is a wide variety of fruits and vegetables that are delicious in their own individual ways but the main attraction is their world-renowned coffee and it is absolutely devine. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Ticos (Costa Rican people for short) are among the nicest and most hard-working people that one will meet in their lives. They love hanging out with food, music, and fútbol on and enjoy seeing Americans getting on in the fun. They have a famous saying called "Pura Vida" which roughly translates as "Pure Life"; that is their motto from sun-up to sun-down. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
The only form of health-care that I received was replacing my glasses and it was relatively straight-forward and much cheaper compared to the USA, as in nearly $100 cheaper in glasses with special frames. |
| * Safety: |
Heredia is very safe, especially around the mall, university, and the "barrios" (neighborhoods) situated around them. One thing that people should look out for is petty theft especially on buses as that is the main mode of transportation, especially going to and from San José, the capital city in Costa Rica. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I got a whole lot of experience and adventure for a discounted price. From zip lining, monkey and sloth watching at a national park/beach, spending a weekend ata resort under a volcano, white-water rafting, going to another beach town, to spending another weekend at a national park dedicated to turtle and other wildlife preservation, and to numerous weekday excursions in Heredia and San José, I had such an amazing and life-changing adventure that I would not hesitate to repeat! |
Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
I did not live so much on a student's budget since I received breakfast, lunch, and dinner for free from my homestay family. But, other expenses for transportation, lodging, souvenirs, excursions, etc. are kind of difficult to manage if one does not plan their budget accordingly, as in my case. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Around $80-$85 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | If you plan on doing excursions independent from the program, make sure you budget that accordingly as in bus fares, hotel lodging, taxis, dinning or grocery shopping, activities that you will do while there, etc. That way you have a much better idea of figuring out how much money you would need this week/weekend. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
They always encouraged us to use the language as both classes that I was in were conducted solely in Spanish and my homestay family spoke very little English |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Spanish in the Media, Advanced |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 10+ |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Just talk to other program participants in Spanish and one can figure out the gramatical mistakes the other person is making and vice versa. Overall, use apps such as Duo Lingo that do a great job in stressing grammar and vocabulary. One other thing is to go to conversational classes where a native Spanish speaker and a native English speaker take turns speaking Spanish and English, pointing out mistakes, thus learning together. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Get much more money in anticipation for the second half of the program! |
Reasons For Studying Abroad
| To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you. |
The Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
