Studying Abroad in Rome Was the Best Experience of My Life Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The workload was to be expected while abroad. Professors expected us to attend class and put forth effort but classes were not overly challenging. They were enjoyable. The grading system was fair and it was fairly easy to get my classes approved to transfer back to my home institution before departing. I had one native Italian professor and one professor from the states and this was evident in their teaching styles. The Italian professor was much more relaxed and a very easier grader. The American professor was much more rigid and expected us to work hard for our grades. I didn't think one was better than the other, I just found it interesting the differences in styles between the two.

On-site administration of your program

We had a local office staffed by 2 very nice women who were constantly there to make sure we were doing okay and were getting acclimated. I had studied abroad again while in law school and by far, my undergraduate study abroad program had many more resources available to students and an office with caring staff that spoke the language of our host country and were able to really give us advice and help us while abroad. The program size was very reasonable and my expectations were more than met. Studying at John Cabot University was one of the greatest experiences of my life.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I loved living in Trastevere. While we lived with other American students, we were in an apartment building with Italians and so we were forced to use the language as much as possible. Additionally, we were not in a very tourist heavy area of Rome so all local places, including supermarkets, forced us to utilize our knowledge of the Italian language which I think was wonderful and helped us get the full study abroad experience. We had to bring sheets with us but cookware and all furniture was provided for us. It was a great little apartment with ample space and a fully functional kitchen, balcony, living room, etc. It was a wonderful place with modern amenities.

There were cute little places in the area to eat, such as Sale e Pepe, and the supermarket was literally at the end of our street, making grocery shopping much easier as you have to carry everything back with you. There was plenty of room for food storage in our apartment because we had a pantry and it allowed us to cook as an apartment very often. I recommend that students eat our minimally. While it is expensive, it also takes away from your experience of living in a foreign country. Chances are if you were at your home in your home country, you wouldn't be going out to eat every night. Us cooking regularly and especially as a "house" really helped us feel more like residents of the country. Additionally, American students should be prepared for some changes in the food available. Certain comforts of home are not available in a foreign country. For example, in Rome, salad dressing aside from oil and vinegar was no where to be found. Ice was scarce for drinks and certain other comfort items, like peanut butter, were hard to come by. I think it takes an open mind once you are there to get over some of these things. It also helps when you come to realize that food in Italy in generally very good. While there are places, especially in big cities like Rome, where food is not as good, you can find some amazing places to eat there as well.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

This program was fantastic in that they took us on a tour of a winery in Tuscany and we had a huge meal on site there provided by the program. Additionally, we had tours within Rome as well as tours of areas of Umbria and Tuscany among other places. They also encouraged us to explore and travel on the weekends and provided us with assistance in planning trips or finding the best deals. The trips were amazing and I would go back in a second if I could!

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

While I didn't have health problems while there, a couple of other students were sick and staff from API went with the students to see physicians and helped to translate and make sure they got the care they needed. I don't recall there being any special vaccinations or any specific health issues that people ran into on the program. In terms of safety, Italy has very little violent crime so the major concerns were really pick pocketing. I think students just need to be aware of their surroundings while in Rome, especially in busy areas like on buses. Have a bag that has a zipper or some sort of secure closure and while in a crowded area, just hold it close to you and be aware of those around you.

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

The program stressed that you take an Italian course while there, as they wanted as many students as possible to become comfortable with the language. I thought this was a great idea. I actually knew Italian before traveling to Italy so I just took an upper level course while there but still found it helpful to refresh as I hadn't studied the language in a few years at that point. The housing that was provided to us put us in a very neighborhood oriented area of Trastevere in Rome and so practicing Italian with the locals was available on a daily basis and really encouraged everyone in the program to learn and utilize the language. Many of the students in the program simply used English and didn't care to really utilize the language but those who did were much more respected by the locals and I think were able to get the full experience of living abroad. I think stressing the importance of trying to work with a foreign language and use it while abroad is an important message to get across to students.

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• Apartment

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• Americans

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