They Came to Serve, But Left Transformed: Inside Our Costa Rica Internship

Internships come in every shape and flavor, but the idea boils down to one thing: experience.  The goal is for the intern to come away with new experiences, new insights, and new abilities that will have an impact on their personal and professional journey.

During their time with us, our 2026 Costa Rica interns (Nicolle, Edna, and Kaza) served with locally led tutoring efforts as well as the elementary program at Las Gradas Betel (CFCI-CR), supervised by Frank & Brittany Hynson, our in-location staff who run CoLaboradores Internacionale (the Costa Rican arm of CoLaborers International). Two days each week they assisted local leaders in the existing program, helping small groups of students in story comprehension, arts and crafts, optional Bible studies, and with meals. The other 3 days of the week, they tutored elementary aged students under the leadership of two local educational tutors focused on literacy and early encoding.  They also helped students with test readiness and homework assistance as well as educational games.  Beyond these tasks, they engaged in community outreach and visited local homes with a Costa Rican social worker to see the context and living environments of the children involved in the program.  This was a full-immersion experience.

Interns reported the joy of those “lightbulb moments” when the students they were tutoring grasped a concept or gained confidence in a new area, their eyes lit up, and the problems on the page became an enjoyable challenge instead of an exercise in frustration.  Intern Kaza said, “I will never forget my experience in Costa Rica, with students who showed up for us every day, like we showed up for them.”  Similarly, intern Nicolle reflected on her internship with the following. “I came hoping to make a difference, but I left realizing that the children of Las Gradas made an even greater difference in me.They reminded me that the greatest lessons are often taught through kindness, resilience, and a simple smile.”  Edna also experienced the connections with the students as the most impactful element, sharing, “their happiness and seeing their smile brought me so much joy and those memories will always have a special place in my heart.”

Over the years, we have seen this internship experience shape the futures of multiple interns.  Brittany Hynson herself is a former intern with our efforts in Zambia.  Another former Costa Rica intern, EliAnna, has operated as secretary of the board for CoLaboradores Internacionale and has been working toward a future where CoLaborers is also active on her home island of Puerto Rico.  The list goes on from there, but we value our interns, their preparation, their experience, and walking alongside them as they make sense of their experience after their return.  That last part is something that makes our internship special, and I believe it undergirds the long-term impact and connections that we often experience with our interns.

For the coming year, in Costa Rica, we are especially looking for education interns as we have continued to identify education as a critical need for the children in the community we work with through Las Gradas Betel.  Education interns can be any major as long as they have an interest in helping young people and have sufficient Spanish language ability to engage with young people in a tutoring or educational setting.  Intern applicants with a psychology or social work background may also find this internship particularly helpful as many of these young people have experienced trauma.  Because Costa Rica is a Spanish speaking country, this internship is also an excellent opportunity for those seeking to improve their fluency in Spanish.

If you or someone you know may be interested in this internship, please apply here or email questions to: david@colaborersinternational.com

Keep on learning and growing!