Katelyn Casady

Overall Experience

I was able to spend 2 weeks living with a host family in Costa Rica, participating in a medical Spanish study abroad. During the first week, we spent about 4 hours a day in small group Spanish classes with teachers from Costa Rica. The second week was filled with 2 hours of class each day, followed by visits to different health care facilities, fire department, and speaking with a centenarian. This was one of the best experiences of my life, allowing me to learn about a new culture and the health care system in a different country.

Learning experience

The most valuable learning experience during my time abroad was visiting different health care clinics during the second week. Prior to this, I have never seen how the medical system works in a different country, so it was very eye opening and educational to be able to learn and understand the process in a different culture. We had the opportunity to talk with different health care providers, such as a physician, lab technician, dentist, physical therapist, and a nutritionist, along with firefighters and first responders. These visits allowed us to see the inside of their clinics and learn about how they work.

Memorable experience

My most memorable experience from my time abroad in Costa Rica was our weekend excursion to Monteverde. As a group, we traveled to Monteverde where there is a cloud forest. We were able to spend some time walking around the city after we arrived, and then the next day we went on a hike in the cloud forest. Our guide pointed out many different insects, plants, and animals to us during our hike and taught us a lot about the cloud forest. Along with seeing many different plants and animals, we were able to walk across one of the hanging bridges in the forest.

What did you not expect?

One thing that I didn't expect was the much more care free and calm lifestyle that is common in Costa Rica. The stress levels of those who lived there were visibly lower, and they were always grateful for what they have. They spend a lot of time with their families and enjoying the company of others, rather than always being on the go. I hope that I can continue to live in the moment like those in Costa Rica, and take life a little slower. My life is always very busy, and this experience reminded me how short life can be, and how important it is to be able to live in the moment.

What advice would you give?

My advice for other students who are interested in studying abroad is to have an open mind, and go on the trip abroad. These opportunities are very educational in so many ways and give you so many amazing experiences. This was my second study abroad, and I believe each of them helped push me out of my comfort zone and allowed me to learn so many new things about a different culture. It is important to go with an open mind because there will likely be many differences, but it is important to embrace the culture you are in and try new things while you are abroad.

How has this experience impacted your life?

As a pre-med student with a Spanish minor, this was the perfect opportunity for me to be able to practice my Spanish and be able to learn more about medicine and how the health care system works in a different country.

How did you learn about this experience?

I have a Spanish minor, so I learned about this experience through the professor who taught the medical Spanish class. This was a new class, and a new study abroad program, so she spent a lot of time explaining the opportunity to us and what kind of experiences we would have while we were there.

International Connections