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Oversea studie (Spanish)

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• in Heredia
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Our institute offers quality instruction at 3 fully staffed and equipped locations at the three most exciting locations in Costa Rica.

Not only is our institute the only Spanish immersion school in Costa Rica that offers its students the opportunity to study at three separate campuses, in three distinct regions of the country, but also at each campus we maintain the same high-quality teaching methodology, faculty, and administrative resources. Our goal is to guarantee that students receive the same first-rate instruction no matter which site they choose to study. As a result our institute is one of the most sought after programs in Costa Rica attracting students from all over the world.

Academic Coordinators

Each institute site staffs a full-time academic coordinator who, in turn, collaborates with our director to ensure that the methods and programs of our institute are properly implemented. The academic coordinator is responsible for placing students in the appropriate level of Spanish through a written exam and oral interview on the first day of class. Once in class the academic coordinators continue to follow the progress of each student, communicating to the professors which materials and methods would be most beneficial to the development of that particular student. To expose students to different teaching styles and accents, professors are rotated each week. We recognize that students learn at different speeds – the academic coordinator is responsible for facilitating the learning process and making any necessary class adjustments.

Our institute offers ten levels of Spanish: three beginners (basic beginner, intermediate beginner and advanced beginner), three intermediate (beginner intermediate, intermediate, and advanced intermediate), three advanced and one superior.

Although the ages and educational backgrounds of our professors vary, all of our professors are extensively trained in methodology, and the majority have worked with us between two and seven years and have extensive experience working with each level.

Our institute takes pride in the high quality of instructional materials utilized (all texts have been developed within the institute) and effective teaching staff. We use a series of three textbooks (beginner, intermediate, and advanced), which are designed to teach, contextualize, and reinforce core grammar concepts that are instrumental to Spanish proficiency.

Our teaching methodology is based on daily conversations derived from the interests of the students. The conversations are supplemented by oral and written exercises, as well as other activities. The primary goal is that students develop confidence in speaking Spanish. For this reason, student participation in class is strongly encouraged.

Classes begin every Monday and are held from Monday to Friday; you may study from one week to however many weeks you wish.

We offers two Spanish programs, 4 hours or 5½ hours per day. The MAXIMUM CLASS SIZE IS 4 STUDENTS, in order to provide each student the greatest level of interaction with other students as well as personalized attention from the professor.

The program of 4 classroom hours per day is designed to allow for adequate time to undertake activities outside of the classroom and is organized as follows:

Theprogram of 5½ classroom hours per day, our most intensive language program, is organized as follows:

*Please note that during the high season (June-July), students may study in the morning or afternoon depending on the number of students enrolled and the discretion of the administration; this is done in order to provide you with the best service possible.

In case that your classes are scheduled for the afternoon, you will have a 13:00 start, with a break between 15:00 – 15:20 and your classes will finish at 17:00. In the event of this happening, the excursions will be available in the mornings and the return transportation from our institute will be available at 17:00.

We also offers one to one lessons in which a student receives more personal attention and studies with great detail a specific topic of their choice. In these private classes, one may learn the specialized Spanish and terminology for such themes as, business, social work, law enforcement, politics, species of plants, nutrition, information technology, petroleum, education, ecology, environmental, sports, economy and medicine. The institute provides the essential vocabulary materials, with English to Spanish translations, and practical situations will be acted out to give the student the chance to use the Spanish for their respective professional field.

One to one lessons can be added on to group classes, for example, group classes in the morning and private classes in the afternoon, or a student may use the whole day for private lessons. For the later case, note the private lessons may be taken during the afternoon and that private lessons are not available during the high season (June-July).

The Spanish as a second language programs designed by our institute meet the linguistic requirements of universities. As a result, we work in a variety of capacities with numerous universities, for example:

Students travel in a group with an accompanying university professor acting as chaperone and integrate into the Spanish immersion classes -examples of this model include: Arkansas State University.

Study Spanish, partake in a variety of volunteer projects and cultural activities/excursions to earn Jan-term course credits – Colby College.

Our institute has created a selection of seminars to meet the special language needs of professionals working in bilingual environments. The course materials, exclusively designed for each seminar, meet the unique requirements of physicians, social workers, psychologists, biologists, business professionals and researchers who work with Spanish speakers. In each seminar participants benefit from intensive Spanish language study, visits to local work sites, and lectures from visiting Costa Rican specialists on topics relevant to the course.

Our institute continues to create professional programs based upon the demand of our clientele. Please contact the Admissions Office (liuyicr@gmail.com) for further information regarding our seminars.

Issued by the Instituto Cervantes on behalf of the Spanish Ministry for Education and Science, DELE is an official qualification accrediting levels of competence and command of the Spanish language. They are the only officially accredited qualifications issued by the Ministry for Education of the Kingdom of Spain that are administered internationally. They are recognized worldwide by private companies, chambers of commerce and public and private educational systems.

Our institute offers a 4 week program for preparation for the “DELE” examination.

The classes are for a total of 5.5 hours a day for 5 days a week.

Although, we do not administrate the exam, we can arrange for you to take this at another associated school in Costa Rica. For more information, guides and the modules for the exam, please access this website: http://diplomas.cervantes.es
This is available to people of any country.

Our families, all of which are carefully screened and accustomed to hosting foreign students, live within the area of the school so that you may either walk to class each day or meet at a central location for morning transportation.

The families are patient and extend themselves to help our students learn Spanish. The family units are diverse - young couples without children, couples with children (of all age groups) and older couples with grown children who are no longer at home. We always do our best to accommodate the students' wishes concerning homestay requests.

With the families you are totally immersed in the Costa Rican culture and have the opportunity to practice Spanish daily. The family provides you with breakfast, dinner and laundry service. With advance notice the host families can meet special dietary needs, including those of vegetarians and vegans.

Our institute can place students together upon request; however, because students tend to learn Spanish faster when not in constant contact with friends/spouses (because of the tendency to speak in their native language), it may be to your advantage to live in separate households.

The standard of living of the host families is considered middle class by Costa Rican standards. In general, students find a simpler way of life than to which they are accustomed, especially in Monteverde and Flamingo. However, Costa Rica is not a typical developing country and many homes have the same consumer items that are found in North America and Europe. All of the homes are clean and students have a room of their own.

Students enter homestays the Sunday afternoon prior to the first Monday class and must leave the Sunday morning after the last Friday class.

We strive to provide more than just academic excellence to its students; part of our mission is to also be a support system to its clientele. The wide range of services provided begin with free airport pick-up service by a staff member who provides preliminary orientation materials and assistance in reaching your destination, and concludes in airport transportation for your departure flight.

Airport pick up and drop off service is arranged for all homestay students and for students with reservations at the apartments and villas. (see point VII). All these students are required to arrive in Costa Rica by entering the Juan Santamaría International Airport in San José.

For students enrolled at our institute of Heredia as their first school, a driver picks up the student and takes him/her directly to their homestay or the “San Joaquín” Apartments in San Joaquín de Flores, for this reason we recommend a Sunday arrival before the start of Monday class (the accommodations are Sunday through Sunday). If a student arrives into San José before Sunday, it is possible to move into the homestay early for an extra $22 per night. During the high season June/July students who arrive early may stay at a local accommodation instead.

Those enrolled at either Monteverde or Flamingo campus as their first school, students are picked up at the international airport and taken to local accommodation, where they spend a night or two depending on when they arrive. Please note: Since you have to travel to Monteverde or Flamingo on Sunday, your arrival day should be on a Saturday.

These accommodations are located nearby the airport. We offer the complimentary airport pick up service to these accommodation options but not to other hotels in the city of San José.

After a student confirms arrival plans and the preferred accommodation, we makes the reservation and confirms the name of the accommodation and address.

On Sunday morning, at 10:00am, students are transferred from the Hostel or the B&B directly to their homestay or other recommended non-homestay accommodation in either Monteverde or Flamingo. Our institute will organize this private transportation through S.T.V Agency, and the transportation cost averages $32 - $35 per person. S.T.V Agency offers this service to our students on Sunday only.

The price of the B&B/Hostel and private transportation is not included in the tuition price and are extra costs. We make reservations for the B&B, the hostel and the private transportation BUT if the student is interested in arriving to Monteverde or Flamingo on a day other than Sunday or decides to arrive on their own, please let us know.

For non-homestay students who need to travel to Monteverde or Flamingo, we recommend the previously explained Hostel or B&B and private transportation combination. The cost of a taxi ride from the airport to the Hostel or B&B is about $10.00.

On Sunday the private van picks up the student from the Hostel or B&B and drops him/her off at their hotel/apartment. It is necessary to inform the Admissions Office in advance if the non-homestay student would like to take advantage of this “travel package”.

The Activities Coordinator at each campus will help to give information when making reservations but excursions are operated for different tourism companies from Costa Rica.

S.T.V Agency, a company specialize for student transportation and vacations, which offer special prices for CPI students. The goal is to provide quality tours at reasonable prices while remaining dedicated to the concept of Spanish immersion by utilizing guides experienced in working with language students.

During the week S.T.V Agency arranges half day excursions to the most popular, local sites. On the weekends a variety of trips are available to students at each of the CPI sites. These weekend trips include intercampus transfers, taking the student directly to his/her new accommodation, when the student plans to attend one of the other CPI sites. Activities and transportation can be paid with traveller’s checks, cash, Master Card and Visa.

For excursions details and prices please ask for the Admissions office for the document of tours offered at each location.

Once the homestay/ the apartment student finishes classes in Monteverde and Flamingo, we transport the student from the Hostel or B&B close to the Airport to the Juan Santamaría International Airport. For Heredia students the airport drop off is from their homestay. This service is offered if the student is flying out of Costa Rica within one week of the termination of classes. The price of the last night in the Hostel or Bed & Breakfast is not included in the tuition price.

Please note that there is an airport exit tax of $26, which must be paid in either colones or dollars or with a credit card.

Free Cultural Activities

Each campus offers activities designed to enhance understanding of Latin America and the elements of Costa Rican culture while practicing Spanish learned in class. Activities include: cooking and dance classes, movie nights, city tours, beach transports, sports activities (soccer, in particular!) and more.

Student Coordinator

In addition to having a full-time Academic Coordinator, each campus also staffs a bilingual (English/Spanish) Student Coordinator available as a resource person to answer questions, address concerns, assist with tour/travel logistics by making phone calls, confirm reservations and arrange inter-campus transportation.

Orientation

Students receive an orientation packet at the airport, which lists half day activities at each of our sites, maps of the local areas as well as a family card with the address, phone number and information about the host family.

As a supplementary measure, on the first day of class, after testing, an orientation is scheduled for new students to discuss the following: local points of interest, school services (tourism advice, post office, private inter-campus transfers, etc.), safety precautions, tips concerning the homestay and cultural acclimation issues.

Library and Internet

There is a library at all three campuses, providing students a small resource center where they can read, study and obtain extra tutoring and/or assistance with homework from the Librarian. Students may take books and magazines home.

Every week there are free activities in the library, such as: “realía” class, vocabulary games, round table debates, craft classes, discussion of local and international news, just to name a few.

Our institute offers a high speed internet service at all of our campuses at a price lower than the local internet cafes. Students are permitted a half hour maximum per day as the number of computers is limited. The cost is 100 colones per half hour in Heredia, which is about US $0.20 and ¢200 colones per half hour in Monteverde and Flamingo, which is about US $0.40.

Internet and wireless internet service is available at all three campuses free of charge.

Be a volunteer

The staff at our institute can help those interested find volunteer work. Recent students have volunteered in: the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, Mariposa Private Kindergarten, The Ecological Sanctuary, The Hidden Valley Trail, The Monkey Park, our English Department and in public and private schools teaching English. Most organizations require a minimum time commitment of 2 weeks.

It is necessary that the student take at least 2 weeks of Spanish in order to be registered at any of the volunteer programs. The volunteer registration fee is $100. Please ask to our Admissions Department for the details of each volunteer program.

Family Arrangements

Our institute offers a family friendly learning environment for parents traveling to Costa Rica with their children. For children 12 and under age an appropriate course corresponds with the particular learning needs of young people. Class time is divided into modules with emphasis on basic communication skills, vocabulary, and the introduction of grammatical concepts. In the same schedule than the kids but in different class the parents are studying Spanish with other adults in their same level. This possibility perfectly combines Spanish immersion with a family vacation. The end result is a memorable linguistic and cultural experience!

For those families travelling with young children (4-6 years old), we have developed a special program covering elemental vocabulary and interesting topics appropriate for their age.

If the parents decide not to sign up their children for classes, babysitting services during class time hours can also be arranged. The family is responsible for the cost of these services.

This is a special designed program that allows all the family to take classes, learning and enjoying a great experience for every family member.

Please ask the Admissions office about our special discounts for families travelling together.

Unaccompanied Minors

In order to secure the best service and attention for teenage students, our policy was extended to permit unaccompanied minors, aged 14 – 17 years, to study at our year-round especially in summer.

Bajo el Programa de Menores, a los estudiantes se les solicita que:
• Firmen un contrato aceptando las reglas de comportamiento establecidas para un menor viajando sin compañía de un adulto.
• Viajar respaldado por un plan de seguro de viaje y salud.
• Hospedarse con una familia.

Teenagers may study the intensive course (4 hours a day Spanish classes) or the super intensive course (5.5 hours a day Spanish classes) in all the three campuses. In June, July and August it is possible to share the group with other teenager students. In the rest of the year the young student may share with students from all the ages. We can provide a certificate indicating the amount of hours of Spanish studied and the level that was attained. This certificate may be presented to the high school or it may be useful for university applications.

An assigned our staff member, typically the Student Coordinator, maintains contact with the student’s parent/chaperone to report on their child in general, and specifically how s/he is advancing with classes and/or adapting to the new culture.

Teenagers may participate in the free cultural activities and in the excursions organized by the school. They share those activities with students from all the ages and all the nationalities.

Minors should be responsible to respect the curfew – 8:30 pm – and inform the host family where s/he is going, with whom and if there is a telephone number in case the family has to locate the student.

Our Minor Program, focused on Spanish language study, accepts teens from all countries, year-round. Teenagers quickly learn in the relaxed environment through small classes, complemented by personalized attention from our bilingual staff when the students are out of class. Young students truly enjoy the exciting opportunity to live with a Costa Rican family and experience the tropical wonders of Costa Rica.

For more information please contact us.