Studying in Costa Rica while having fun with American friends. Past Review
By Vanessa M (Spanish, The University of Texas at Austin) for
Study Abroad Programs in Costa Rica
I wish I would have been more exposed to Ticos my own age rather than only Americans. I did not know I was going to be placed in a school of Americans.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Costa Rica was beautiful, but I felt the program wasn't very well organized. My family didn't have any questions to ask me after the first day or so because they were so used to having American students, so I didn't practice as much Spanish as I would have liked. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Strengths was that the faculty was very friendly and helpful, weakness is that they don't require you to speak only spanish, which makes it harder to be submersed in the language to be able to practice it more |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Housing was very clean and cozy, my room was extremely small, and the food was the same rice and beans every day which got very old very quick. it took me 10 minutes to walk to school which wasn't so bad, and the neighbors was family of my host mom who didn't want anything to do with me (except the daughter who would come visit every so often to help her grandma make food) |
| * Food: |
food is very bland but i wanted to save money so i ate with my host mom as often as possible instead of going out to eat |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
don't leave items unattended, they WILL be stolen |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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) |
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| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | hotels |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | spanish advanced grammar |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
All students spoke English, professors and my host family spoke only Spanish, but my host mom was the only one around, and she never gave me a chance to speak, she would only speak the whole time. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Try your best to practice Speaking as much Spanish as you can because when you are with the students (who are all American) it is hard to practice and if your goal is to come back fluent, it won't happen unless you take the initiative. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Contemporary Hispanic Literature |
| Course Department: | |
| Instructor: | Erica Calderon Rojas |
| Instruction Language: | Spanish |
| Comments: | Interesting and enjoyable |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | No |
| Course Name/Rating: |
Advanced Spanish Grammar |
| Course Department: | |
| Instructor: | Gabriella Murillo |
| Instruction Language: | Spanish |
| Comments: | Not very well taught |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | I had already taken this course, this was my second time taking it so I didn't need the credit. |
