Student Tips for Making the Most of Your Study Abroad Program in Italy

* I studied abroad in Florence in the same semester that my girlfriend was in Milan. We did different study abroad programs at different colleges, but were lucky enough to have breaks at the same time almost every time. We were less than three hours away by train, so we spent every free weekend in one city or another. Our favorite spot to hang out was Cinqua Terra - which was a longer trip for me, but kind of close to her. While we both got a lot out of our study abroad programs while we were in Italy, we agreed that getting out and doing things on our own really made the experience most memorable. We plan to vacation Italy as often as possible.

* My study abroad program in Italy was really cool because they made sure that we took plenty of weekend trips. My favorite trip was to Florence for the leather market. The study abroad program advisor went with us but was really cool - he let us wander all around the city on our own, which I've heard some study abroad advisors don't do. We also went to Milan, Rome and Cortona, but I loved Florence the best. It made Venice, where I was studying abroad, seem so small!

* Every student that studies abroad in Italy learns about the fabulous hot spot called Cinqua Terra. It's five fishing villages on the western coast up at the northern part of the country. The villages are connected to one another by a little milk-stop train and a series of hiking trails. I've heard that it used to be that no one knew about this little place, but when I went, there were tops of other tourists. I recommend staying in Vernaza - the middle town, and then spending a weekend hiking back and forth to the other towns. Don't forget the gelato!

* I know a lot of people like Rome, but it wasn't what I was expecting. I stayed with a family for my study abroad program and didn't really get a good sense of Italy or the city because the family imposed a 10p.m. curfew on me. I really didn't like that. I would suggest to all students studying abroad in Italy and staying with families to check with the program first - make sure that your study abroad program matches you with a family that doesn't make you come home at a certain time. You'll miss out on a lot of Italy's finest culture - the night life.

* When I did my international study abroad program in Italy, I went directly through the Art Institute of Florence. It's a two-year program that specializes in art instruction (obviously). For living arrangements, I made a deal with a local hotel and, essentially, lived in the hotel like someone would live in a studio apartment. I even had someone come to clean my room twice a week ... for only about 20 Euro a day. The program at the University was fun because for the whole first year, we were only allowed to draw in pencil. Because I'm a painter, I found it very challenging, but by the end, I was thrilled with my painting improvement. I recommend the program to anyone. I think the best thing to keep in mind when studying abroad is that you can really do whatever you want - it's just a matter of finding the means and deciding what exactly you want to do.