Erin Coates ‘08
Portland, Maine

Erin Coates is an Environmental Studies major who spent a semester abroad with the School for Field Studies in Costa Rica

 It was very eye-opening to learn to communicate with people from a culture other than mine and with another language, and at the same time be respectful of  them. Academically, I learned a lot, but I have also discovered a lot about myself, the world and how I want to live in it, about my relationships with people. Now I definitely have a direction in my life and more passion for my interests.  And I have acquired a useful skill: safe traveling.

When: First semester junior year

Why did you choose to study abroad: I wanted to study and apply my concentration, sustainable development, in a real world experience, which is what my program let me do.  I also wanted to explore another part of the world and get some time off campus.  There were so many opportunities studying off campus for a semester offered to me that the campus couldn't offer me, especially because of our geographical location. I wanted to study sustainable development, tropical ecology, and land management in the rainforest, and in a developing country, and I obviously could not do that in Massachusetts.

What language did you speak: English, Spanish

What did you study: Tropical Ecology and Sustainable Development, Natural Resource Management, Economic and Ethical Issues in Sustainable Development, Spanish Language and Culture, a research class.

What next: I am going back to Latin America after graduation to do some work with the environment, ecology and natural resource management, be it volunteering or an actual job.