Milan, Italy: How I wish I had the knowledge I do today Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The entire Italian education system is highly different than the American education system. This is not to say that one is better than the other, but in Italy, your grade is wholly comprised of one or two papers and one or two tests. There is no homework, thus no 'busy work' and the professors do not check up on you to make sure that you are doing the readings. It is very much independent study, and for the most part, attendance is not recorded, of course this all depends on each individual professor. All in all, the professors want to think the best of you but you do truly have to make your best effort to receive good grades.

On-site administration of your program

Although I loved this program, students going into it just need to be prepared for anything. The way the system works is completely different as compared to American systems. The Italian time table runs MUCH later than the understood American timetable. Now that I have hindsight, I forget many of the things I wish I had known, so a few surveys through out the semester may be a smart thing. Also, definitely a survey right before departure.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Definitely LOVED living with my local student. (Recommended!!!) She was helpful just learning some of the customs of the area and learning where things were, not to mention helpful for Italian homework! My particular apartment was not really all that close to the center or nightlife, but as it turns out, it was much closer than many other apartments. I understand IES cannot have all of their apartments right in the center of Milan, but it was unfortunate to have to catch the last metro to my apartment before I wanted to. (However, the ones farther away from the center are much bigger and much nicer, so it's a toss up which is better in my opinion.) You DO need to buy sheets. IES collected ours a few weeks into the program. We also needed to buy things like toilet paper and cleaning supplies throughout the semester as they run out, but of course it is spread out across roommates.

Cheapest way is cooking for yourself. But there are many kabob places (awesome) and pizzas are incredibly cheap as compared to American standards. Milan is pretty industrial and not at all rural, so there is plenty of ethnic food, different from the way it tastes in America though! There is a Chinatown, Mexican food, etc, etc.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

We went skiing/snowboarding in the French/Italian Alps, and it was absolutely incredible. We also went on a cuisine trip to many smaller towns in Italy, places much less traveled. Everywhere in Italy is different and incredible. The south is especially amazing and definitely recommended.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Never had an experience.

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

Each student is given the option to live with a local Italian student, but there are also plenty of IES staff around who are more than willing to practice Italian with American students. There is also a strong recommendation to sign up for a language partner, in other words an Italian student from the area who wants to learn English in exchange for helping you learn Italian. (Of course there are other languages available for diverse students) Also, the Italian student I was living with gave me a list of potential families to babysit/language tutor for, a great source to practice Italian with!

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• Apartment

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• Americans
• Local Students

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• Americans