Discovering Costa Rica

Page 46

In most cases, parents need to submit application forms prior to an appointment being granted.

Application forms can be found on the school’s webpage. No appointments can be scheduled

during a schools’ vacation time. Home finding trips and agendas are designed around these

school appointments. Few schools will make exceptions to schedule last minute or same day

appointments.

Dwellworks will arrange for the appointments, but be aware it is better to schedule the

appointment with enough time in advance. Typically, there are a limited number of appointment

spaces available. Dwellworks provides expert information and can schedule appointments for

school visits, but every school requires full involvement from the parent in the information and

registration process.

Helpful Hint:

Schools will not send Dwellworks information on individual applications,

nor will they talk to Dwellworks about individual assessments, exam results, and tuition

arrangements. That communication only happens directly with the parents.

Most schools will request an interview prior to a placement test. A school tour is not a guarantee

of placement, as some schools have a waiting list. This is especially prevalent in preschool, first

grade, and seventh grade. Due to government tests at the end of primary and high school, it is

difficult to enroll students in the sixth or 11th grade.

There are two types of private schools in Costa Rica:

Local bilingual schools:

An average of 60% of their curriculum is in English, and the

rest is in Spanish. Their school year calendar goes from February to November. The

mid-year vacation time of three weeks is scheduled at the end of June or beginning of

July. There is one or two weeks of vacation during Easter

International schools:

These schools offer an American curriculum in English, with

usually just one subject in Spanish. Their school year runs from August to June of the

following year, with a one-month vacation during December and an Easter vacation.

Local and U.S. holidays are observed

Language Academies

Spanish

Intensa

Tel: (506) 2288-4747 Escazú

Complejo Trilogía (in front of Pricemart). Second building, first floor

E-mail:

CPH Language and Cross-Cultural School

Tel/Fax: (506) 2282-9920 / (506) 8376-8224 Santa Ana, San José

From Ceviche del Rey, 150 meters north and 300 meters east

E-mail:

Website: