Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The academic rigor of this program did not compare with the academic rigor of Providence College. The education of this experience, however, was as great an education as that I have received at PC. The education simply did not occur within the classroom. Rather, it occurred in my interaction with other people: restaurant owners, store owners, Europeans on trains and buses and airplanes. Learning to communicate and to grow in an entirely different culture is where the education of this experience lies.

On-site administration of your program

Joanne and Brooke wer always available. The assistant program director was a student recently graduated from Fairfield University and she lived in our apartment building. She was easily accessible, though it sometimes took her a bit of time to address issues.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The housing was ideal. I lived on the Piazza del Duomo, in the center of the city. The apartment building was full of American students in my program. These accommodations allowed for a cushioning and a support system throughout the program. Everyone within the building became very close and spent alot of time together exploring the city. <br /><br /> The location was ideal. The actual building, however, had some problems that took longer than expected to fix. Our washer was broken and leaking for some time before any one came to look at it. The girls downstairs had a serious issue with mold that took months to be addressed. The apartment situation was ideal with the tenants and location, and the slowness to react, we came to realize was simply a part of the Italian way.

The food was whatever we knew how to cook. It forced us to learn to cook, to grocery shop in a foreign country. It forced us to budget better, and it brought the different tenants in the building together because we often cooked together for convenience. we ate alot at the osteria del Agnolo where massimo, the owner, and marti the waiter took care of us every time we went in to eat.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

To ease the stress of mid term time, finals time, holidays away from home and down time during the semester. the program arranged dinners at nice restaurants in the city. these dinners were free but not mandatory and allowed the students to experience fine dining and took the stress off of worrying about cooking and planning meals in an otherwise busy time. As I mentioned the orientation process was very successful and fun and brought us into the experience very smoothly.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I felt that Florence was very safe, indeed there were times where I realized that I felt too safe. There were a few students who got sick during the semester, the doctor the program recommended spoke English and if necessary paid house calls. The hospital was not far from the apartments, but I do not know of any one who needed to be taken there for any health concerns. The store owners at the pharmacie were also very helpful. they were doctors who could prescribe medicine simply based upon your symptoms, without you needed to pay a visit to the doctor especially.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

I think that I definitely learned some Italian. I went to Italy with a very very basic understanding of the language from 3 years of lax study in high school. I wanted to learn the language and so aought every opportunity to speak italian. I wish that I could have learned more, I am far from any level of proficiency. I did, however, learn to incorporate Italian into my every day language and learned enough to get around Florence without using English all the time.

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• Apartment

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• Americans