At the end of the month-long intensive language and culture orientation unit,
students enroll in regular courses at the Universidad de Costa Rica. With
advice from the Grupo de Kansas program staff and past student evaluations
for various courses taken at UCR, students select appropriate courses for
the remainder of the academic semester. The courses are taught for native
speakers; therefore, it is extremely important that a student be ready
to meet the challenge of successfully completing courses in Spanish. UCR’s
semesters are approximately 17 weeks long and end with final exams in early
December for the fall semester and in early July for the spring semester.
For short course descriptions in Spanish, visit the Grupo de Kansas website at http://kansas2.fcs.ucr.ac.cr/ and then click on UCR courses. This is not an official University of Costa Rica catalog, and its use is restricted to participants in the program and prospective students.
For a list of courses that students have taken in the past and the "KU Course Equivalent", click here. Students will need this information for their applications.
It is not possible to guarantee that a course will be offered during a particular semester. Nor is it possible to know if a course will have openings. Therefore, students are strongly encouraged to have several alternate classes approved by their academic advisor and by appropriate department chairs at SLU prior to arrival in San José to ensure they get full credit from the desired department. Students must confer with their advisors and department chairpersons well in advance of going abroad in order to plan their academic programs and avoid problems.
Credits earned in Costa Rica are considered resident credits. In San José, students complete the credit-bearing orientation and 3 - 4 regular courses (12 credits) at UCR, for a total of 15 credits/4 SLU units. Grades are averaged into each student's cumulative St. Lawrence G.P.A.
Normally, students make their final course selection during the month-week orientation in San José. Course offerings at the University of Costa Rica vary from semester to semester. The program director, who is familiar with the UCR curriculum and professors, can offer excellent advice on appropriate courses. Students should heed that advice.
UCR’s semesters are approximately 17 weeks long and end with final exams in early December for the fall semester and in early July for the spring semester.
It is critical that
students have preliminary discussions with department chairs while still
on campus as to which courses they plan
to take at the UCR. It is not possible to guarantee
that
a given course will be offered during a particular semester or that there will be "open slots" in a particular course; therefore, program
participants must have several alternate classes approved by department chairs
and their
academic advisors. Then -- from San José -- they will notify the
Center for International and Intercultural Studies and the appropriate department
chairs of their final course selection.