Balancing Experiencing Europe with an Extremely Rigorous Program June 22, 2022

By Samuel L (Classics, Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/27/2022 to 05/13/2022 with

ICCS / Centro: Rome - The Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I understood more about where my passions lie with regards to Classics. It was sometimes lonely in a new and foreign environment but I certainly grew a lot and came back with a new perspective. I would 100% do it again and have no regrets, though it was not always a cakewalk.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	They were super well organized and the head director, Franco, was like a father to all the students along with his wife Pina.
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I mean, I was living in a tiny dorm with a roommate.
* Food:	Only problem is eating too much
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	The goal of the course is not to integrate with the local culture, so you have to do it yourself. I really enjoyed the neighborhood, Monteverde, which allowed us to make relationships within the community.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	When people had a problem, one of the directors would immediately help you get into the local international hospital and guide you through the process. The healthcare system was good, though they dealt with my concussion in a different manner than in the States.
* Safety:	One guy got jumped which is bad, but you just have to be city smart. Rome is a pretty bustling city but can get quiet at night so it helps to always be with someone, especially as a girl. Guys can be creeps
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	Yes If you are a Classics major, latinist, archeologist, art history major, history buff, etc., this is the perfect place for you. It's intense and you have to wake up at 8 am just about every day, but it's perfect if you are down for it.

Finances

* 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)	They fed us three times a day, five days a week, so you just needed money for snacks, drinking and food on the weekend.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	<100
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	Drink less

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	Yes
How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program?	Intermediate
How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program?	Intermediate
What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure?	251
How many hours per day did you use the language?
Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants?	Go out and make friends or talk with other people on the program in Italian.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Dorm
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Americans
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Americans
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?	Course Material Intimacy of the Centro Food
* What could be improved?	Rooms Culture immersion Assessments
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	My weekly schedule

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.	The Academic or Linguist You went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you!

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Renaissance and Baroque Art History
Course Department:	Art History
Instructor:	Paul Tegmeyer
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	Paul had almost too much knowledge for his own good. He was a walking encyclopedia. We spent Wednesdays in the classroom for lecture and Fridays out on the city, visiting churches and art museums, which was an incredibly invigorating experience. It was incredibly lecture based–no classroom discussions or anything of that based–but Paul was always helpful answering questions. Our only assessments were a midterm, a final, and a site report where we had to prepare a presentation on site about a certain piece of art.
Credit Transfer Issues:	I don't know, I need to fill this out first, before.

Course Name/Rating:	Latin Epigraphy
Course Department:	Latin
Instructor:	Rhodora Venarucci
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	It was a challenging course that sought to jump right in Latin Epigraphy, Rome being the best place in the world to do so. Not only were her lectures extremely engaging and interesting, but the class would continue when we went out into the city outside of class. We had weekly assignments that were all different and sought to engage our critical thinking and a final research paper at the end of the semester where also had to assemble a corpus of inscriptions and analyze them.
Credit Transfer Issues:	N/A

Course Name/Rating:	Ancient City
Course Department:	Classics
Instructor:	Kathleen Coleman, rest of instructors
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	Call me a philologist, but site visits three days a week for a total of about 13 hours gets to be pretty exhausting. Though, I admit, that is the whole point of the course: as much exposure to Ancient Rome as possible. The homework was historical reading which sometimes had nothing to do with the site visits, though I thought the readings were chosen well. I had an issue with how we were assessed, through semi-weekly quizzes generally, sans essays or tests. I thought it would have behooved us to write a few essays during our time here, but we did not. However, the other two Ancient City assignments–a creative podcast and a site report–I enjoyed greatly.
Credit Transfer Issues:	N/A counts for two though