Summary Description of Maya Immersion Programs (dates, costs, credits, homestays)
Course Details & Resources: Funding, Course Materials, Teaching Staff
Learn the Correct and Incorrect Uses of names Maya and Mayan
Learn about OSEA Maya Pedagogy and Assessment of Available Learning Materials
Past Participants: Experience, Comments, Achievements
Download Current Flyers / Summary Description
OSEA offers one On-Site Four Week Program (not eligible for FLAS funding):
4 Week: June 11 to July 8, 2023
Six Week On-Site FLAS Eligible Program 2023:
On-Site, 6 Weeks: June 11 to July 22
Summary of Program Details
Download Current Brochure Here. Click Here to Download Brochure
Summer: Six or Four Week Beginning Program, for Non-Students, Undergrads, & Grad students
Dates: 2024 Six Week and Four Week On-Site Programs
4 Wk On-Site: TBA 2024 (2023 dates: June 11 to July 8)
6 Wk On-Site: TBA 2024 (2023 dates: June 11 to July 22)
Start: On Site Orientation Starts at Noon on Start Date (Sunday); departure on end date after 10am
Locations: Pisté and Chichén Itzá, Yucatán, México, and surrounding Maya Indian communities
Includes overnight trip with Maya instructors to Maya communities in Cruzob region of
Quintana Roo and Caste War region of southeast Yucatan, or other areas of Peninsula
Credits: 8 credit hours,
Beginning Level 1 (150 contact hours)
6 credit hours, Intermediate Level 2 & Advanced Level 3
(150 contact hours)
4 credit hours for Four Week Undergrad Course
(100 contact hours)
See course descriptions here
Course Levels: Beginning, Intermediate, Advanced courses
Program Cost: Direct Enrollment Tuition (payment direct from participant to OSEA)
Six Week Maya: $6,400 (On-Site or Remote); plus Program Fees, Room & Board for On-Site
Four Week Maya: $3800 (On-Site or Remote); plus Program Fees, Room & Board for On-site
The US Dept. Education FLAS Grants provides full tuition payment and a stipend.
The Rey Mis / Mis-Ceme Families Scholarship provides tuition reductions ranging
from $2000 up to $3000
per award based on demonstration of financial need.
Program Fees, Lodging, and Meals:
Six Week Homestay with Maya speaking family, includes meals, $1800
Four Week Homestay with Maya speaking family, includes meals, $1400
Room & Board in Apartmental Rental or Posada plus two meals with Maya speaking family may be available for grad students only; pricing varies and is determined in May of each year based on interest of eligible participants, current FXR, and local pricing.
Please note that Program costs had to be raised due to the historical drop in value of the US dollar. From a stable 20 mxn pesos to US$1 for the last decade, the dollar dropped to 16 mxn causing a dramatic adjustment of costs.
Eligibility:
Program is open to: undergraduate majors and graduate students in any field of study.
Persons who are not students but who have completed a minimum level of BA are also eligible.
Requirements:
Undergraduate students need a GPA of 2.5 for coursework taken to date
Graduate students should demonstrate the need to know Maya for their research
Minimum 1 year of college level Spanish or demonstrated fluency is suggested but not mandatory
No prior coursework or knowledge in Maya language is necessary
Weekends: The weekends are free time for participants to conduct research, regional travel, or engage in independent learning activities. Travel during program dates should be restricted to the Yucatan Peninsula (within 2-3 bus hour each leg). Participants are provided structured fieldwork methods and tasks that can be used to maintain their learning experience.
Out of Pocket: Personal items, consumables, incidentals, laundry, non-program travel including lodging and meals, transportation to and from airports and ground travel to Pisté are all out of pocket expenses to be paid for directly by the participant.
Course Credit Hours
The OSEA Intensive Maya Language Immersion Program meets the pedagogical criteria and standards for teaching Less Commonly Taught Languages established by the US Department of Education for FLAS Awardees to be able to use their FLAS grants.
Beginning Level 1 is equivalent to one semester of study and provides 8 university course credits.
Intermediate Level 2 is equivalent to one semester of study and provides 6 university course credits.
Advanced Level 3 is equivalent to one semester of study and provides 6 university course credits.
Four Week Course is equivalent to one semester of Beginning Maya and provides 4 university course credits.
Course Accreditation
The Maya language courses for undergraduate participants include accredited course credits and transcript from the current OSEA Partner, UIMQRoo — Universidad Intercultural Maya de Quintana Roo. Click here for UIMQRoo. Graduate students typically do not require accredited transcript credits in order to complete their foreign language degree requirements. If you are a graduate student requiring accredited transcript, please contact Dr. Quetzil Castañeda to discuss your situation.
Home-Stays
Home-stays with Maya families are carefully selected based on the Program Director’s 30 years of experience in the community of Pisté. OSEA has carefully developed a list of Maya families with home stays are possible. The overall size of the population of Pisté greatly restricts the number of families that can be potential host families. OSEA works with families whose household economy provides for a basic minimum of "creature-comfort" infrastructure -- which includes a variety of factors from bathrooms, electricity, space for study areas, and other criteria. OSEA also works with families of lower socioeconomic position who thereby lack many creature comforts to which US students are accustomed. Participants are required to purchase a hammock for sleeping in homestays; a special hammock shopping trip to a nearby town is organized during the first days of the program.
Lodging
Maya participants may need non-homestay family lodging and meals. OSEA can arrange for other options for eligible graduate students, professors, and non-students. OSEA partners with local family owned and operated posadas (aka pensiones) to provide one alternative. These include Posada de las Dos Lunas and the Posada Olalde (Locations and Directions). On occassion, it might be possible to find a room to rent for two months in Pisté. Meals are arranged with Maya speaking families
Enrollment
* Direct OSEA Enrollment allows students from any university with any residence status or nationality to enroll directly with OSEA. By arrangement with their institution's financial aid office, students can apply their award to the OSEA Program. All payments are made directly to OSEA by the student as per guidelines described in the application process and payment options.
Transcripts and Course Accreditation
Upon completion of the program the student receives an OSEA transcript and an accredited transcript from the Universidad Intercultural Maya de Quintana Roo (UIMQRoo), OSEA's partner institution in México. The UIMQRoo is an institution on the list of accredited Mexican institutions accepted by US institutions. In order to facilate the transfer of credits, students receive two copies of each transcript in a sealed envelope. One of these envelopes is then hand-delivered by the student to the registrar of their university in order to comply with your registrar rules for acceptance of transfer credits. It is recommended that every participant discuss the credit transfer process with their departmental advisor to secure their knowledge and approval. Note that it is the university's registrar that makes final determination on the transferability of course credits. The second transcript should be archived for future use.
Latin American & Iberian Institute at University of New Mexico (LAIL–UNM)has partnered with OSEA to help provide summer FLAS funding for eligble learnings of Maya who seek to attend the OSEA Maya Immersion Program. Visit for detailed information on application dates, award, and eligibility.
See OSEA Course Details and Resources for more information:
Universidad Intercultural Maya de Quintana Roo (UIMQRoo)
(UIMQRoo) (https://www.uimqroo.edu.mx/), located in José María Morelos, Quintana Roo (QRoo), is OSEA's parnter for intercultural exchange of students and faculty. OSEA course transcripting is authorized by UIMQRoo.
OSEA offers Two Distinct Maya Language Programs
Six Week Intensive Maya at Beginning, Intermediate, or Advanced Levels is designed for FLAS Awardees
The Four Week Maya language & culture immersion program is ideal short course for undergrads or graduate students with restricted summer calendar. Note: The four week course does not satisfy FLAS requirements for the minimum six week duration of an intensive LCTL summer program. .
Six Week Course Contact Hours meet minimum requirement for FLAS Funding:
Level 1 Beginning Maya: 150 Contact Hours
Level 2 Intermediate Maya: 150 Contact Hours
Level 3 Advanced Maya: 150 Contact Hours
OSEA offers one On-Site Four Week Program (not eligible for FLAS funding):
4 Week: June 11 to July 8, 2023
On-Site FLAS Eligible Program Dates 2023:
On-Site, 6 Weeks: June 11 to July 22
In case of global health mandates OSEA Maya can be restructured as hybrid or fully remote, based on enrolled participants or applicants, program dates are adjusted to accommodate emergent health situations or travel restrictionss. Contact quetzil@osea-cite.org for details.
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