The NRCSA Center in San Jose offers several exciting programs of instruction in the Spanish language. Its short term courses of two, three and four weeks are very popular among visitors to the country. The team of instructors are both professional and experienced. The instructors are all native speakers of Spanish, and each holds university degrees and experience in teaching Spanish as a second language. The teachers share in the belief that classes must be enjoyable to the students.

Central to the centers philosophy is that it be a cheerful, congenial place to study. Staff members enjoy meeting and relating to people from different countries and backgrounds. Located in a quiet, upscale residential area, the school's campus is but a 20 minute walk from downtown San Jose. It has comfortable, sunny classrooms, surrounded by green areas with a vista of mountains as the backdrop. Besides the main building, there is an annex a few blocks away that is usually used during the busy months. It is also a very attractive facility with additional classrooms and a swimming pool. The two buildings have a total of 22 classrooms. Students can use the school's computers to access the Internet and send and receive E-mail. At the moment, the center offers this service free of charge.

Students have different language backgrounds. Some have never been exposed to Spanish before. Others have studied Spanish, or have lived in Spanish speaking countries. A few speak the language fairly well. Some participants have a fair knowledge of Spanish grammar and vocabulary, but cannot speak or understand a native speaker in normal speech. Others, although relatively fluent, never had the opportunity to experience formal language training, and would like to correct their pronunciation, improve their use of verb tenses and enhance their style.

San José, the capital, has close to 1,000,000 inhabitants. At 4,000 feet above sea level, it boasts a springtime climate year-round. The city surprises visitors by its vitality. Despite its cosmopolitan atmosphere with Central, South and North Americans as well as Europeans on busy downtown streets, its residents display an unmatched friendliness and warmth. Tourists as well as visiting businessmen happily testify to this. Every year the country attracts a large number of people who, having visited Costa Rica once, decide to return to settle here.