Costa Rica promotes local universities at US fair

Four private Costa Rican universities this week are participating in the National Association of Foreign Student Advisors (NAFSA) Fair in San Diego, California.

The event takes place Tuesday through Saturday, and Tico universities are aiming to promote higher ed opportunities to 8,400 members of the association, according to Costa Rica’s Foreign Trade Promotion Office (PROCOMER), the agency that coordinated the country’s participation.

Costa Rica is represented by the universities EARTH, UNIBE, ULACIT and Veritas.

“Our country offers a variety of great programs,  security and also proximity to the United States. These benefits along with Costa Rica’s image as a tourist destination and natural beauty, makes us very attractive to NAFSA advisors that usually are seeking to offer U.S. students a holistic experience,” said PROCOMER’ Trade Promotion Manager Álvaro Piedra.

Tico college advisers at the NAFSA event hope to establish alliances with colleges abroad. For that reason, the Costa Rican schools are presenting their information together in one stand under the slogan “Essential COSTA RICA,” and promoting the concept “Costa Rica: Widen your horizons, nurture your life.”

Costa Rica is the eighth most popular spot in the world for U.S. students to study abroad and the most popular in Latin America, according to the latest data of the Institute of International Education. Piedra added that the fair’s main benefit for local universities will be to learn of the latest study abroad trends.