In this program students can choose from a variety of courses related to sustainable development and social justice including the environment, politics, and human rights. The goal of this program is to help students acquire an in-depth knowledge of these topics and develop cultural awareness through exposure and immersion into the Costa Rican way of life. 

Through organized field trips, daily life in San Jose, planned cultural activities, the homestay program, and the service-learning component of community work, students will have the opportunity to interact with locals, engage with the culture, and experience the pura vida lifestyle that the world has come to know and love of Costa Rica. 

The service-learning core course contains weekly sessions of community service in and around the greater San Jose area. Each student is individually matched to a community work site that aligns with their experience, career interest, and Spanish language level. Connecting with some of our at-risk populations or engaging with innovative sustainability projects is an important element of the ICDS curriculum that allows students to connect to the community on a deeper level.

Costa Rica is home to one of the most diverse populations in Latin America and to numerous cultural and ecological sites that students can see while studying with ICDS. With San Jose as students’ home base, many of the most iconic beaches, volcanoes, and waterfalls are easily accessible for day or weekend trips.

To apply, reach out to your university’s Study Abroad office.

This four week summer program offers strong Spanish language and cultural immersion components as well as hands-on experience in rural Costa Rica. During the first two weeks, participants will be based in San José, where they will have orientation, take Spanish classes, and do community service in urban locations. During this time, students live with a local Spanish-speaking family and have an opportunity to be immersed into the language and culture before traveling to their Sustainable Practice site in rural Costa Rica.

The rural experience takes place in Cartago, a province that is famous for its lush, fertile countryside, that makes it the perfect location for the Sustainability Practices and Food Security course. Participants get involved in the culture of rural Costa Rica by living on site at a local farm. They also work alongside community members as part of Finca La Flor’s involvement in community’s development.

To apply, reach out to your university’s Study Abroad office.

This summer program offers students the opportunity to explore healthcare in a developing country while improving their Spanish speaking skills. This four-week program gives students and healthcare professionals the necessary language proficiency to work and interact with Spanish speaking patients, their families as well as future colleagues.  

Clinical rotations for advanced Spanish speakers or community service in social welfare services for lower to intermediate level Spanish speakers are experiential learning components of the Spanish and Health in Latin America program. Spanish classes before, during, and after these hands-on experiences are designed to provide students with an on-the-job Spanish skill set specifically for careers in the healthcare industry. 

Students’ understanding of the course themes are enhanced through the ongoing  experience of cultural immersion. First, the ICDS homestay program allows students to live with a local family and learn the culture and values of daily life in the tropics. ICDS also provides several opportunities for students to meet, relax, and explore unique aspects of Costa Rican culture through planned group activities and field trips.

To apply, reach out to your university’s Study Abroad office.

ICDS provides students interested in the field of health with the opportunity to gain knowledge and real-life hands-on experience on Costa Rica’s universal public-private mix health care system, ranked among the top 36 worldwide and as number 1 in Latin America, as well as different health care platforms in the region. In coordination with Hospital Clínica Bíblica and Universidad Latina de Costa Rica, this program offers students the opportunity to explore health care in a developing country and improve their Spanish speaking skills. Spanish has become a necessary language to work and interact with Spanish speaking patients and their families, as well as with future colleagues.

Advanced Spanish speakers can opt to do observational clinical rotations at Hospital Clínica Biblica. Students with an intermediate/beginner level do community service in health-related initiatives. Through practical courses and visits to health care facilities that integrate the country’s health system, participants learn about the unique health care model in Costa Rica and the way global public health issues unfold in the region. Spanish classes before, during, and after these hands-on experiences are designed to provide students with an on-the-job Spanish skill set specifically for careers in the health care industry.

Students’ understanding of the different course themes are enhanced through the ongoing, dynamic experience of cultural immersion. First, the ICDS homestay program allows students to live with a local family and learn the culture and values of daily life. ICDS also provides several opportunities for students to meet, relax, and explore unique aspects of Costa Rican culture through planned group activities and field trips. These, combined with the on-site rotations and community work, give students ample opportunity to interact with locals, engage with the culture, and learn from one of Latin America’s most beautiful countries.

To apply, reach out to your university’s Study Abroad office.