Global Service and Language Program

  Costa Rica

• San Jose: 
San Jose
• North Western Region: 
Arenal
• Eastern Lowlands: 
Tortuguero

Duration of Program: 2-4 weeks
Typical Duration of Program: 2-4 weeks

Description: You will spend two weeks on a building project with Habitat for Humanity where you will live alongside volunteers from all over the world. Housing and meals will be provided in a small guest house. The third week you will embark on an ecotour visiting sights such as the Arenal Volcano, from which you will ride horseback up to lovely waterfalls. You will spend two days at Tortuguero National Park where you will see butterflies, hummingbirds, an array of colorful tropical birds and countless marine species. You will visit Manuel Antonio National Park beach where you should see Capuchin monkeys and many types of birds and mammals. Along the way you will have an exciting rafting trip on one of Costa Rica's beautiful rivers.

Each group will have a leader from CIEE who is experienced in group travel, who will meet the group at the departure city, conduct an orientation to the program and who will remain with the group for the duration of the trip.

Highlights:
- Habitat for Humanity Building Project
- Costa Rican Ecotour to volcanoes, waterfall, rainforest
- Group rafting trip

Qualifications: Participants must be between 15-18 years of age. No previous knowledge of Spanish is necessary, but students with a basic knowledge will expand their skills. Participants must be sincere in their desire to perform
physical work and should be flexible, enthusiastic about meeting new people and in good physical health.

Cost in US$: 4,250

Program Does Not Include
* Transportation to and from our gateway city
* Passport or Visa fees
* Medical fees for immunizations deemed necessary by your personal
physician prior to travel
* Personal spending money or phone calls

Experience Required: no

Typical Volunteer: High school students between 15-18 years of age who are flexible, enthusiastic about meeting new people, and in good physical health.

Age Range: 15-18

Participants Travel to Costa Rica in Groups

Typically Participants Work in Groups of 5-10

Application Process Involves:

• Phone Interview
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Transcript
• Written Application

Council on International Educational Exchange's Mission Statement: CIEE's mission is to help people gain understanding, acquire knowledge and develop skills for living in a globally interdependent and culturally diverse world. We approach our tasks aware of the great responsibility we are given to help mold tomorrow's citizens in a complex and fast-changing world. We are committed to being a truly global organization. We continue to open new offices, establish new programs, and form new partnerships on every continent. We have initiated exchange activities between and among many of the newer countries we now serve and expect this pace to quicken in the coming years. We move into the next century, and into our next fifty years, with lofty, but achievable, goals. We are proud of our past and excited about our future and our ability to contribute to the world in which we live. CIEE moves forward with the same spirit of commitment that has already made us a worldwide leader in international education and exchange.

Year Founded: 1947