Construction Management senior Emily Cendejas-Garcia recounts her study abroad experience helping strengthen rural healthcare in Costa Rica—and the life-changing lessons she learned along the way.
My name is Emily Cendejas-Garcia ('25) and I’m studying construction management, one of the Undergraduate Applied Sciences programs offered at the College of Continuing and Professional Studies. I went to Costa Rica for the Pura Vida study abroad trip in January. This was my second time on the Pura Vida trip, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a life-changing experience. On this trip, I was picked to be the student leader; I was nervous about leading the team but grew to enjoy it. Good communication was key to our success. I learned that I love helping others and working on meaningful projects.
Our trip to Costa Rica focused on improving the Equipos Básicos de Atención Integral de Salud (EBAIS) clinic, translating to Basic Comprehensive Health Care Teams in English. EBAIS Piedades Norte clinic is an important healthcare center for about 7,000 people in Piedades Norte, San Ramón. The community relies heavily on agriculture and has an aging population, with many living in rural areas. Around 12.7% of Costa Ricans live in poverty, and 4.7% live in extreme poverty. Improving this clinic would greatly improve the lives of people in the area.
The clinic had several problems: insufficient space, an old layout, and a need for more services like ophthalmologists and dental care. The roof needed to be replaced, and there were no design plans to work with, which made things harder. Our charge was to develop a feasibility study for potential improvements.
