One of the most biologically diverse places out there! Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The academics took up slightly more time during the program than I anticipated but it really helped accelerate the learning process in such a short amount of time. The academics are fast paced, touching on many different topics.

On-site administration of your program

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

We stayed in a hotel for 3-5 nights out of the six weeks, 3-4 nights in bunk houses and the rest of the time on our sleeping pads either in our tents or netted in platforms. It rains a lot, especially from June-August, so anywhere we stayed we were on covered platforms.

We bought, prepared and cooked all of our own food on a couple different types of stoves (camp stoves). I would say we had some great cooks in our group, so that made our food great! Common things we ate: pasta, rice, beans, sandwiches, cookies, vegetables, fruit, nuts, oatmeal, coffee, tea, arepas, tortillas, lentils, hot sauce, fried cheese, occasionally meat.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

We got to make some great friendships/partnerships with the locals living on the Osa Peninsula. We were invited to dinner on many occasions to their homes and to birthday parties and other celebrations. Three of my favorite things from this was the latin dancing, the food and getting to talk about the culture with the locals.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

The instructors are very knowledgable and trained for these types of circumstances. They were able to go into town for many different types of medications/prescriptions. We also had access to the doctors on-call through global rescue (although we never needed to use them). You need to get vaccinated for typhoid fever before going and there are some concerns of the zika virus. I was not concerned about the zika virus and there hadn't been any cases on the Osa when I went. If you are worried, just make sure to bring bug repellent. Travelers diarrhea is very possible, but easy to treat.

The only thing to be worried about is theft (like many other places) and snakes. I never felt unsafe. The instructors and hosts do a really good job with making sure safety is the number one priority. As far as snakes goes, wear your knee high rubber boots and keep your eyes on the trail.

We were absolutely spoiled by diversity. I met so many new species and came to understand some of them very intimately. I learned so much about myself and the world around me. I got 9 upper division credits while hanging out in the jungle, and the cherry on top, we are working toward conserving this incredible paradise.

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

The program itself is pretty expensive, so it covered everything. The only time you ever needed your own money was traveling to Costa Rica, out of Costa Rica, souvenirs, and any other personal expenses.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

Spanish was NOT required but we got some opportunities to use it.

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• Other

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• Americans

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• Americans

• The insane amount of biodiversity
• Our field research/work/projects
• Some of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen

• Less time consuming academics
• More structured grading to make it more fair
• Better understanding of the program beforehand

The Avid Adventurer