Costa Rica Internship -As The Costa Rican Times prepares for this summer’s journalism internship we received a letter from one of our previous interns. This year’s summer internship will go from July 7th to August 16th. We have moved into our new facilities and have 3 women already committed for this summer and are hoping to get one more to join us.
At the program the students will learn about all aspects of the modern day journalism field. This includes TV/Video, Writing, and Radio. During the Costa Rican Times program, the intern will be required to step outside of their comfort zone to learn more themselves. We hope to help them discover their path in life while learning needed skills in their specific journalistic field.
Are you looking for something to do this summer before going back to school? Do you want to spend some time in Costa Rica? This might be for you. This summer is going to be females only but we will be always accept applications for male interns.
Check out the Jouranlism Intern Program Here
Are you looking for something to do this summer before going back to school? Do you want to spend some time in Costa Rica? This might be for you.
This is a letter we received from one of our interns.
I have always been quite the dreamer . . . dazing off in class while waiting for that bell to ring just to get a move on with my life. Then once I got to high school I was in many eyes a “stoner.” I laughed and shrugged it off because I wasn’t even smoking. I wasn’t interested in high school to say the least. I found it a complete waste of time. I felt I had wits and smarts but not the patience to remember writ material to put on to a test and forget it the next day. I was more creative, and I wanted so much more.
I found myself in college and thought I might have a change of heart, I got over a 3.5 my first year and it was all smooth sailing to dream land since. I started flying during my sophomore and junior years of college, which slowly pulled me towards wanting out of the typical school experience I had been so used to for so long. I wanted something new, engaging and different. I needed a break from it all. The summer between my junior and senior year I took my dreams and made it a reality. I packed my bags for Costa Rica. I was sold on the pictures and honestly needed nothing more to convince myself I would love it.
I arrived at the San Jose airport, alone and carrying with me a few hundred dollars. I found my way to the bus station, after paying a $60 cab for a $16 fare. Took the bus to Jaco and found my way to the house where I had arranged to stay. Quickly the few hundred dollars to a few calones, I was basically broke. I looked on craigslist and found an ad looking for a writer. The ad was asking for creative individuals who had experience writing. I emailed and quickly had an interview with Dan. It turned out Dan was the owner and ran a local newspaper company called the Costa Rican Times. I was soon writing a few articles a week and was making enough money to continue my stay through summer.
Soon my abilities in my writings were taking a leap forward. I can’t accredit this learning curve to the 
amount I was writing, but to the amount of encouragement to write about whatever the heck I felt like. Dan only expected great content the subject came second. It seemed he knew it would make me better because I would be more engaged. It was also very easy for me to approach him about what ever question I had.
I was enjoying my time more than I could have imagined. My free time I spent a lot of my days trying to learn another new skill, surfing. I wasn’t any good at first, yet I loved every moment of it. I was floating out past the break watching these amazing surfers catch a wave with the backdrop of the jungle. I’ll never forget a day I was out past the break and saw a little blue butterfly come by and soon after another and another, then there were thousands. They obviously were hatching and heading for some far off land. Chills ran through my body, it was such a beautiful moment.
The summer was slowly coming to a close, meaning I would have to head back to school for my last year. Reluctantly, I went back and finished my fourth year. I was not engaged at all that last year in my studies, which was engineering. I soon started applying for jobs in the field of Journalism. I was sending out essays and resumes, doing my best to lay out a dream job for the future. I had sent an essay and application out on a whim to an Australian newspaper company, they quickly acknowledged me. They liked my writing and even though my studies didn’t match up with the journalism major they felt I was a fit. I came to find out they picked me over many applicants because they felt I was cultured and had a great sense of creativity.
Even though my job here is not as free range as the Costa Rican Times, I can only attribute my success and love for writing to my time living and working in Costa Rica. Dan and The Costa Rican times had shaped me into not only a writer that I wanted to be, but a writer another company could appreciate. I was still day dreaming like my days in high school, but now I was getting paid to write.
– Michael Richardson
Check out the Jouranlism Intern Program Here
