ICADS is Costa Rica's Best Past Review
By Abby V (ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE/LETTERS., Rice University) for
Institute for Central American Development Studies (ICADS): San Jose - Summer Internship Program
It was definitely worth it; ICADS was amazing, and I feel like I gained so much independence and understanding of another culture. It also gave me the opportunity to have an amazing medical experience I could never have had as an undergrad in the US (putting in stitches, etc).
Personal Information
| The term and year this program took place: | Fall 2007 |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
All of the teachers were committed to providing a great learning experience. Our language classes changed teachers every week, to give us experience with different accents, and the maximum class size was 4 students. Our globalization and culture class was very interactive, with field trips to microcredit organizations, squatter settlements, agricultural cooperatives, and more. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
I absolutely loved ICADS; however, I felt like at times they seemed a bit disorganized, which could create confusion for students. But part of that may simply have been my lack of understanding as to how things were run, as every student ended up with an internship they were happy with. While at our internship sites, we spoke with someone from ICADS twice a week via phone. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
In San Jose, I lived in the neighborhood of Curridabat, and in Heredia, I lived in the neighborhood La Liliana. In both houses, I had my own room. In San Jose, there was a hot water shower; in Heredia, it was a cold water shower. <br /><br /> My neighborhoods were both relatively safe. In San Jose, I lived just a few short blocks from school, and in Heredia, I was a twenty-minute walk from work. Cities in Costa Rica aren't necessarily aesthetically pleasing, but there were beautiful views of the mountains in the distance. My housing was arranged through my school. |
| * Food: |
My host mom in San Jose was a great cook; my host mom in Heredia was not. I always had enough to eat, it just wasn't always necessarily my favorite. I definitely recommend telling your host family at the beginning what you do and don't like; otherwise, you're liable to see some of the same foods you don't care for repeated day after day. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The group of students studying with me was great; I'm still in touch with many of them. They were very easy to travel with, and we took lots of weekend trips. In addition, our school arranged some cultural events for us, such as dance lessons. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Health issues were addressed adequately; I got sick a lot, but that was mainly because I was working in a clinic. I felt fairly safe; the recommendations the program gave us for safety were good, and I was never robbed or anything like that, but I did feel like, as a tourist, I was always going to be a target, so I was perhaps a bit paranoid. But everything worked out fine. |
| 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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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | In San Jose, I would spend about $25-$30/week on food, drinks, taxis, etc. On a weekend trip, I would spend between $30 and $100, depending on where we were going (the $100 was for an all-inclusive trip our first weekend that included a private van, zip-lining, horse-back riding, hot springs, and food). In Heredia, I spent hardly any money, maybe $5/week. Weekend trips still cost the same, though. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Go cheap with the hotels; you won't be spending much time there anyway, since you'll be out exploring most of the day. And if you're at the beach, it will be hot enough you won't mind a cold-water shower. As far as unanticipated expenses go, depending on what your internship is, you may have to buy some clothing so you're dressed appropriately (one girl had an internship on a farm, so had to buy clothes for that; someone else was working in an office part of the time when she hadn't expected to). |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
During the first four weeks, we not only were living with a host family, we also had Spanish language and literature classes for four hours a day. Then, during the internship period, I lived with an exclusively Spanish-speaking family and all of my colleagues and the patients in the clinic spoke to me only in Spanish, so I was truly immersed. My language skills improved tremendously as a result. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Seize every opportunity you can to explore more of the country and learn more about it; ask questions; really take your time deciding on what internship is perfect for you, and have the time of your life. |
