Florence Past Review

By (Early Childhood Education, Colby-Sawyer College) for

AIFS: Florence - Richmond in Florence and Internship Program

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
yes. i was able to learn a new langauge and a new culture while living in it. i met new people and learned how to be an independent person

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

i felt like the workload was a little light. For Culture class, i felt like ther could of been more to the class. we just had a book and we had to feel out worksheets. no quizzes or tests. for art history i liked being able to go out and the teacher was very good with explaining everything

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

we had no problem contacted them. they always checked their emails and if the school was closed they had an emergency number we could contact them at. they also did check ins to see how everything ws going in the apartments. also if anything was broken they would get someone to fix it asap

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

some people were from italy while some were from the states

* Food:

they always asked about all of these

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

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)

Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? only spend money on grocieries that really need. dont buy a lot of snack food. for souvenir shopping and clothes shopping try to thnk if you really need it before you buy it

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
Language acquisition improvement?

in the Italian class. Most of the people in Florence spoke English which made us feel comfortabel and made us feel like we didnt have to us Italian

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Apartment
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
  • Other