I knew a little bit about what to expect before landing in Costa Rica from the pre-departure meetings, but the country defied those expectations. I learned about how hard it can be to open a business in Costa Rica, but saw how passionate those people are about what they do. Just starting a business there can take anywhere from three months to three years. One of the most surprising things we learned was that Costa Rica has 105 different taxes. These include the Costa Rican equivalent of Social Security and other various taxes. This can make it extremely expensive to keep a business open, due to the high rates.
One big cultural difference between here and Costa Rica is that children do not move out of their parent?s house until they are married. Otherwise, they stay and help around the house. They also typically attend a university at this time. Another cultural difference was how people dress. No matter what the weather is, people wear pants or jeans. However, it is common to see people wearing shorts at the beach or when working out.
Studying business in Costa Rica showed me how well businesses can work with the environment. Many businesses there place a big emphasis on being environmentally friendly. Costa Ricans care a lot about the environment, and this can be seen in many business practices, from using cacao bean shells to produce packing to having a dedicated day for cleaning up part of the city. The level of care Costa Ricans have for the environment is unmatched by any US company.
Now that I am back in the US, I can say that choosing to study in Costa Rica was one of the best choices I ever made. Learning about how businesses are run there has made me wonder how other cultures do business and I am excited to learn about those differences in the future.
