Imagine exploring the Costa Rican cloud forests or wandering through San Jose’s bustling markets, or maybe even working on an agricultural cooperative. This might not sound like the typical first year of college, but then again, Friends World is not your typical college.

As a Friends World student you begin your studies at the Latin America Center in Costa Rica. Situated in the northeast part of Heredia City on the outskirts of Costa Rica’s capital city of San Jose, the center provides the ideal setting for the Foundation Year Program. Students will find the center and the surrounding area to be a charming location to spend their first year of college and will also discover an altogether warm atmosphere in Costa Rica. In addition to the hospitable climate, students will find the people they encounter; the center’s faculty and staff, the home stay families and the locals are equally as hospitable.

The Foundation Year Program takes advantage of Costa Rica’s setting and characteristics to introduce students to the fundamental aspects of the Friends World Program; experiential and individualized learning rooted in cross-cultural understanding. Costa Rica is a small, varied and accessible country, comprising so many of the characteristics common to its Latin American neighbors that students will gain a better understanding not only of the country itself but of the larger region as well. The setting affords students the opportunity to look at some of the most pressing regional and global issues while getting involved on a local level. The Foundation Year Program is an incredible way for students to participate first-hand in the various elements of Costa Rican and Latin American society. Right away students learn that their education will take them in and out of the classroom, on a path best suited to their way of learning. The coursework is designed to broaden the students’ understanding of the culture and also help them process their experiences. Students immerse themselves in the theory and practice of experiential education; participating in seminars on topics of Latin American and global interest, completing an internship, field project, or service learning project within the community. The combination of Friends World instruction and independent learning prepares students not only for their future Friends World endeavors but it also prepares them for becoming active global citizens with a greater sense of the world.