Study in Perugia Changed My Life! Past Review
By Ara G (Art history, Trinity University) for
Arcadia: ISI Perugia - The Umbra Institute
I was so excited to experience works of art in person that I had studied for years. At some point in my life I want to go back to Italy and work or intern at a museum or in some other artistic capacity.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I took primarily the Italian course and art history courses, and they did not seem to differ much from typical art history courses. The Italian teachers (by nationality and language they teach) are much more easygoing than American teachers and joke around when you mess up your Italian. Though it's intimidating at first, it makes you realize that not only is making a mistake not a big deal, but the teachers make mistakes with their english also. It is comforting to know that, though fluent, the professors are also students of language. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They have a wonderful support service, including many contacts to doctors, dentists, counselors, etc. if anyone ever needs them. I prefer smaller groups, so the program (about 110 of us) was a wonderful size. The only thing that I was surprised by was the fact that we only had American students in our program. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
Try everyting! Though the restaurants along Corso Vannucci are wonderful (Pizza Mediterranea and Al Mangiar Bene are particular favorites of mine), you should also try to find restaurants off the beaten path (Pizza Musica is worth the hunt, and so is the elusive Osteria del Tempo Perso). Eating out can get expensive, so budget wisely. But even on a meager budget, buying groceries and going out to try as many fabulous restaurants can be manageable. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
For my Leonardo da Vinci class we traveled to Florence and Milan to see many of his works. By the time I was finished studying there, I had seen every Leonardo painting that was still in Italy! |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Perugia is a typical city, so just use your head. It was not a dangerous place, but you should always make sure to walk with another person at night, lock your doors and windows, etc. Being thoughtful about basic safety procedures is key. We were given all of the emergency numbers, including an emergency contact cell phone that one of the staff members carried at all times. The program has a close relationship with local doctors, dentists, and people of that nature, and help you make appointments with those individuals. They will even help the student when going to the doctor if their Italian is not the best. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I spent about 100 euros on food a week, which was split between groceries and going out to eat. Traveling averaged about 200 euros in a weekend (including food, travel, lodging, etc.), though it was often significantly less if I took the train somewhere instead of flying. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Bank fees can be outrageous overseas. Though I was lucky enough that one of the banks in Perugia was a sister bank to my local bank, fees for using a credit card abroad were substantial. Your best bet is probably to get about 100 euros from your local bank at first (never trade money at the airport, it's expensive!) and then withdraw larger amounts of money from ATMs instead of using a credit card. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
We had to use primarily Italian in the shops and around town, every day. We could practice Italian with local Italian students, students who went to the University for Foreigners, the Italian tutor, and in a biweekly meeting of people who wished to improve their Italian or English. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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