Studying in Florence helped me become the person I am today! Past Review
By Laura B (Mass Media: Media Management, Promotion, and Sales, Illinois State University) for
Lorenzo de' Medici – Florence
I gained patience and understanding for what is and isn't important in life. It definitely made me want to go back and travel more!
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. |
While the workload, difficulty, and teaching methods were not exactly standard or too hard compared to my schooling at Illinois State, I feel as if I all together learned more this past semester with my classes and how they compared to my experiences abroad more than any semester I've had in college. The teachers were dedicated and passionate and helped you culturally understand as well. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
LdM does a very good job, but is still lacking the Americanized way of how a university works. That would be expected at any school abroad though. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My apartment was brand new and had brand new everything. My roommates and I were very pleased with our apartment. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Field trips sponsored to southern Italy and Tuscany region were put on very well by LdM. They were a fabulous experience and some of my favorite weekends. Accommodations were fabulous too! |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Florence is extremely safe. You obviously must have your guard up in any foreign country but I felt almost more safe walking at night there than I do in America. |
| 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? | 50 euro |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | All expenses were pretty expected. It would have been nice if a sample travel breakdown budget could have been provided to help prepare for traveling. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | None, 3 years of Spanish in high school |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I used Italian language every day even though many Italians spoke English too. They are learning English and we as Americans are learning Italian and both want to impress the other with trying. It sometimes became a battle of languages. |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Direct Enrollment |
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 do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Anyone would benefit. It is an amazing place and university to study at! |
