Jennifer Villanueva, Seminar and Field Trip Costa Rica, Summer 2026
This summer I spent a lot of time around university campuses in the San José area of Costa Rica. While I was abroad, I was able to learn much about the academic culture and how it compares to the University of Pittsburgh and other universities in the U.S.. For example, I was most shocked to learn how different private and public universities are and how involved students are about politics. Having the opportunity to hear from various students was crucial to understanding the different academic cultures that I could observe.
First, before going to Costa Rica, I was aware that the school systems would be different from the ones in the U.S.. Some of these differences had to do with entrance exams, costs of schooling, and even primary education curriculums. One major difference between our academic systems is the importance of public universities in the Latin American country. After talking to students at the University of Costa Rica, a public university, I learned that it is more prestigious to attend a public university than a private one. This is because their public universities are well funded by the government, are more affordable than private universities and also hold the best academic programs. Additionally, after talking to some students at private universities, they mentioned how attending the private schools was more beneficial in terms of flexibility with the timeline of completing programs. Many students stated that private schools could offer faster or slower tracks to completing a degree depending on the needs of the student. Hearing the different perspectives from students was helpful for understanding a little more about the academic culture at the university level.
Another difference between the academic culture in the U.S. and Costa Rica was the amount of student involvement with politics on campus. It was very common to see murals in the center city of the capital but you could also find many artistic expressions throughout public campuses. In Costa Rica, public universities are funded by the government and according to the national constitution, universities are provided with more autonomy despite the government funding. Historically, universities have become spaces for protest which has further increased the presence of political activism in these spaces today. I really enjoyed hearing from students about their opinions on the universities, the government and more.
Ultimately, my time on these university campuses was insightful about the differences in academic cultures. I was lucky to have the opportunity to apply the knowledge I had from textbooks to real spaces in Costa Rica. I also enjoyed gaining a better understanding of the intersection between history, culture and politics on the campuses.
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