Prepare before arrival
Complete methodological readings and consult with the professor to strengthen the research question, study design, and draft proposal.
Plan a program 
Advanced Primate Behavioral Ecology · Winter Session 2026–2027
Build the project
behind the observation.
An advanced primate field school for students with prior behavioral research experience who are ready to develop and conduct an independent project with wild monkeys under real field conditions.
DatesDecember 29, 2026–January 15, 2027
Application deadlineDecember 14, 202615 days before the course begins.
Duration18 days · Winter Session
Tuition$3,000International airfare is not included.
Field locationsCamaquiri · Mata Banana · Barra del Colorado · South Pacific · Osa Peninsula · Boruca
Course experience
Observe carefully.
Think like a field scientist.
Students prepare through assigned methodological readings, research planning, and faculty consultation before arriving in Costa Rica. At Camaquiri, they refine an approved proposal for research under field conditions and devote most of the course to systematic data collection for an independent project, supported by lectures, group exercises, and regular faculty guidance. During the final week, the group travels to Costa Rica's South Pacific and stays at Casa Gratitud. Students conduct primate censuses, visit Corcovado National Park on the Osa Peninsula, and visit the Indigenous community of Boruca.
- Develop a focused, feasible research proposal grounded in primate behavior and ecology.
- Select and refine behavioral data-collection methods for actual field conditions.
- Collect demographic, group-composition, individual-identification, and survey data with research-level consistency.
- Connect an independent project with Camaquiri's ongoing primate monitoring and emerging study sites.
The research journey
From field methods
to a complete project.
Students move through the same core stages used in field primatology: careful observation, ecological measurement, an approved research plan, and evidence-based communication.
Present and refine
Present the proposal at Camaquiri, evaluate its feasibility on site, and adjust methods when field realities demand it.
Prioritize data collection
Dedicate the core of the field course to systematic behavioral and ecological data collection for an independent project.
Explore the South Pacific
Spend the final week at Casa Gratitud, conduct primate censuses, visit Corcovado National Park on the Osa Peninsula, and visit the Indigenous community of Boruca.
Build a research product
Organize and interpret the evidence, connect findings to the scientific literature, and develop the work into a substantial final paper.
Clear from the start
What your tuition
covers.
Course tuition is designed to cover the complete academic field experience in Costa Rica during the official program dates.
- All accommodations throughout the official course dates.
- All meals throughout the full course.
- All in-country transportation required by the itinerary, including ground and water transportation when applicable.
- All scheduled arrival, departure, and inter-site transfers within Costa Rica.
- All entrance fees and scheduled program activities.
- Academic instruction by the course faculty and instructors.
- Personal research and field equipment, including binoculars, course-specific personal materials, rubber boots, and notebooks.
- International airfare.
- Personal expenses.
- University credit or any fees charged by a participant’s home institution.
Meet Your Professor
Dr. Jill Pruetz
- Academic affiliation
- Texas State University · Regents’ Professor of Anthropology
- Specialization
- Primate behavioral ecology · Savanna chimpanzees · Biological anthropology
Dr. Pruetz has directed the Fongoli Savanna Chimpanzee Project in Senegal since 2001. Her comparative research examines how environmental pressures shape ape behavior and inform the study of early hominin ecology.
2026–2027 field courses
Ready to learn
in the field?
Applications begin with fit, preparation, and academic interest. No payment is required to submit the form.
Start your application ↗